Stay
by magickmaven
Summary: Duke and Jennifer's romance on and off the screen. Later we'll explore the origin of The Troubles, Jennifer and Audrey's relationship/connection and how they can save Haven. All of the characters will appear, but the focus is on Duke and Jennifer. This is getting a very adult rating because it's going to have some very adult scenes. So please be one to click.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: None of these characters are mine and neither is Haven. If that was so, you'd have to watch it on HBO, or Skinemax. I make not profit off this and have no desire to do so, I just want to have fun. I may pull the characters a little OUT of character from time to time but my goal is to keep them as close as possible while I draw the story along. I'm starting with the intention of keeping close around the events of episodes as they come along, but again, I may have to veer off. We all have our stories to tell. This is the first time I've ever tried to complete and publish a fanfic so constructive criticism and technical pointers are welcome.

This picks up with Season 4, episode 8 "Crush"

"My feelings for Audrey are complicated. But I'm not that selfish." That wasn't really true but Duke wasn't going to get all open hearted touchy feely with Nathan right now.

"You know, it's funny. In some ways you're actually one of the most selfless people I know."

Duke felt that clench in the space not too far under his heart that was starting to get familiar. "You're actually the second person to tell me that today."

"Who was the first?"

"Someone a lot cuter than you." And Duke needed to NOT let her move off his boat or out of his life. After stripping off the diving suit he made his phone call. Not surprisingly it rang once and went to voice mail. She was still pissed. He knew her though. He knew she would listen to his message. He knew all too well the effect he had on her. He'd played only lightly with the frisson of energy that always ignited around them. He hadn't really played fair. But protecting her had become a priority along the way and that meant from himself. From curses that were worse than silver eyes and almost uncontrollable strength and urges. From a history of horrible things happening to the women he cared about. Duke wasn't selfless. Because he planned on keeping Jennifer. On his boat. In his bed and in his arms.

Jennifer paced and ranted. Mostly she ranted out loud and kept her more confusing thoughts to herself. Because the confusing thoughts were tangled with memories and sensations she was going to have difficulty shaking off in the coming who-knew-how-long it would take to get over it all. Get over Duke and the fact that HE had never once kissed her, just some kid named Tyler using Duke's face and mouth and scent and taste. And how she had ignited anyway. How she ignited every time he touched her or stood close. Get over how Duke had carried her away from danger and stood between her and any threat from the day she had sprung him from the mental hospital. Hell, contrary to what he said was his nature he'd placed himself between almost everyone in Haven and danger every chance he got. So she wasn't special. No matter how she wanted to believe that in sending her away he was trying to protect her. What she felt was on her and her alone, including her mixed up feelings about the end of his curse. And Duke obviously had a flame for Audrey going on. God, she'd been so stupid. But then that phone call when she had been collecting things from her birth family's home. Not wanting to deal with him she'd taken a shallow and not satisfactory enough revenge at rejecting his call. "I reject YOU, Duke!" But then, she couldn't listen to his voicemail fast enough.

"Jennifer, I'm sorry. I was stupid. I don't want you to leave the Rouge. Please. Get your stuff and come back. I swear I'll explain when I get there. Ah, please be there."

That last sentence was so soft and desperate feeling. It was so damn sincere and piled onto her confusion. But she did what he said. Because, apparently she was stupid and pathetic. But at least she could make up her mind - unlike certain self-proclaimed bad ass businessmen.

Duke neared the dock and said a silent prayer of thanks to whoever was listening that Jennifer's car was there. He had no idea what to say to her. How to explain why he wanted her to stay or why she should. Foremost on his mind was the incident when Tyler had used his body to kiss her. To try to land some claim on her for obvious reasons that still pissed him off. Because even in the back seat of his own body he'd tasted and felt her. Tyler's quick arousal and reaction to her had only been aided by his own. And he was a little bothered by the notion that he didn't feel very sorry that the kid was dead. Tyler's body was ruined but his soul had apparently never been in very good shape to begin with to treat the lives of others so shabbily. He wondered if she knew it would be different when he kissed her. Competing for space in his crowded brain right now was the sight of Wade leaning over her, going for her neck with the knife in his hand and abusing Jennifer on his mind. And just the memory of that burned a clarifying light for him. He loved Audrey. She had inspired him and believed in him. And he loved her. But it wasn't the way Nathan loved her. His feelings and reactions to her weren't the same as those he had for Jennifer. He didn't know if he loved Jennifer. But he damn sure wanted to find out. So he wasn't selfless. And in about 45 seconds she was going to find out just how selfish he could be.

He could hear her as soon as he got below deck. And if he wasn't on such a serious mission he would have laughed. She was always so utterly herself. Possibly one of the bravest people he'd met and so full of fire and life. And she didn't hold back in her expression.

"Make up your mind – Businessman!" Jennifer wheeled around for another good pacing and ranting combo and stopped when she saw Duke.

"Hi!" Hell! How long had he been there? How much had he heard? She straightened. It was too late to pretend she hadn't been having a one sided ass-chewing session with him. She could do it in person too. Or she could if he didn't seem so different. He was even quieter than usual and looked like he had something to say. He HAD promised an explanation over the phone. She'd let him get it out and it had better be good.

So when he moved in and kissed her she was so completely unprepared for it, it felt like she was sinking in a hole that suddenly erupted in the boat underneath her and clinging to Duke was her only salvation. Because it was DUKE this time, not that awful kid Tyler. And while the scent and taste were both the same Duke's presence shot through her and coiled around her like one of those fire tornadoes in Australia. He released her and gazed down at her, like he was gauging her reaction or asking her permission. She swallowed to get her heart out of her throat and back where it belonged and decided that a kiss like that was better than any explanation she was likely to hear from anyone ever in the history of ever and showed him what it was like when she really kissed him back. Not just accepted a kiss from Puppet Duke. She took in his gaze that had gone hot and even a little dark with something she wasn't sure of and reached to pull him back and kiss him back and not let him go any time soon.

Duke gathered her into his arms easily and smiled through the continuing kiss. She was tiny and fiery like a C4 explosive and he wondered if she would appreciate the comparison. He felt her hands caressing his neck, tunneling into his hair where it was gathered. One hand clasped onto his shoulder while she tugged at the band with the other. At the same time she was doing this mindscrambling suck on his tongue that was going to cause things to go a lot faster than he had intended. He adjusted his hold on her, bringing her flush against him with her legs wrapping around him as he dragged his hand down her body, gripping her ass and forcing her even closer, grinding her against his cock right at her sensitive spot. She released his mouth and gasped, her head tilting back and her neck arching toward him. He took the opportunity to regain control, fastening onto her beautiful jawline and the delicate skin just beneath, earning a contented purr and slightly alarming wiggle from her. He pivoted and pressed her against the wall, using it for leverage as he worked to get her boots off and start on her blouse. Her own hands were successful in removing his hair band and starting immediately on the buttons to his shirt. Once the boots were off she wrapped her legs back around him and used the wall for her own leverage, grinding against him as she moved her own head forward to pay him kind for nibbling at her neck.

"Jesus! Jennifer!" If he didn't get her off the wall now he was going to pin her to it. She giggled at some private amusement and he spun away from the wall, finally getting her back to his room. Once she was standing in her bare feet he had to duck a little lower to kiss her and she was already ducking to finish his shirt one handed, the other already working on his pants button. In an apparent race to get each other dressed he would be winning, after all, he had her boots off. Finishing with her buttons he stripped off her jacket and blouse at once and unfastened her bra from the back while he tugged open the button to her jeans and started on the zipper. She had hit an obstacle with is under shirt and instead of letting her raise it he pulled off her bra and caught her wrists in one hand while he pulled at her jeans. When he couldn't get them down any further he knelt before her and yanked them the rest of the way off along with her panties, leaving her naked before him. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her navel, giving himself a calming breath and moment to regain control of himself. He eased back onto his haunches and gazed at her. He took in the play of light and shadow on her ivory skin, perfected with the odd freckle here and there. He committed to memory her tiny frame; every curve and dip and the shadowed rose of her nipples as they hardened and budded at his gaze. His hands braced her hips, one thumb softly stroking the taut, delicate skin inches from where her soft dark curls brought his gaze down to her sex; where he could see soft glistening folds waiting for him. He looked up to see the sun lighting her eyes with gold and lighting her hair with a dark red fire with gold burnishing. Her hands were stilled and grasped his shoulders. Her beautiful mouth parted and she breathed his name.

Jennifer's skin felt tingly all over and too tight by half. She couldn't catch her breath, not with Duke gazing up at her like that or with his hands grasping her hips with his fingers curled into her ass and his thumb doing something hypnotic at her hip bone.

"God, you're beautiful," he husked. And she was sure she blushed down to her toes. One hand released her hip and caressed upward. With his fingers fanned out he brushed the tips across her breasts and then brushed his knuckles gently across the under swell of each breast. He proceeded with a leisurely caress of his hand down the plane of her stomach and Jennifer couldn't suppress the tremor that went through her or the gooseflesh that erupted across her skin. He rose up fully onto his knees and kissed her in the space where her rib cage made an arch, using his tongue to taste her skin. He pressed his face against her there and nuzzled her.

"Jennifer, I, ah… If you want me to stop – now would be the time to tell me." Even as he said it he was trailing kisses like fire down her belly, pressing his tongue into her navel as one hand slipped around and gripped her thigh, gently urging her legs to part. Another hand rose to her inner thigh and hovered just at her mound.

Was he kidding? Did HE want to stop? "I don't. Don't stop." She couldn't manage much more than a whisper.

"Good. I really didn't want to." And then he touched her, feeling the slick wetness that had gathered between her legs and pressed a finger in as he leaned forward and took her clit in his mouth and sucked.

"Ohmigod!" Jennifer was suddenly struggling for balance and breath. Her fingers clawed into Duke's shoulders, neck and scalp and she ended up being completely anchored against him when he nudged one leg over his shoulder. His free hand steadied her at the base of her spine. When he curved the finger inside her, finding that slightly swollen ridge of flesh and added another finger Jennifer lost her struggle for balance and collapsed backward onto the bed and used her breath to cry out her release. Duke followed and didn't let up, keeping her in that ecstatic state long enough to free his straining cock from his pants and get the condom on, bringing her back over the edge with the edges of his teeth on her clit and a stiffened tongue thrusting into her.

"Duke! Oh… Oh my GOD!" Jennifer wasn't a virgin, and this wasn't the first time she'd had a guy go down on her. But it had been a long time and her lovers few and far between. She hadn't graduated from Emerson with honors by being a party girl. And she hadn't landed a position at The Globe by sleeping her way there either. Being labeled a crazy person had left her out of the mood for sex for the last six months, not to mention reducing her opportunities. Her experience hadn't left her wanting at the time but Duke was starting to make her wonder just what she had been missing. No one had ever made her feel like her insides were melting by standing too close and no one had ever made her come so hard she felt like the ecstasy would tear her apart using just their mouth. Where were his hands? She loved his hands.

Just as the thought occurred to her she found his hands at her back, scooting her further back up the bed as he moved his mouth away and showered the sensitive skin of her inner thigh with nibbling kisses. He burned that trail up her body as he positioned himself over her and when he reached her breasts, his mouth closing over first one and then the other bringing her back to a panting need for more.

Duke held off from finally taking her as long as he could. He felt like a lost man finally found. Her body had arched for him and her voice had cried for him without guile or strategy. The way she'd clenched around his fingers and even on his tongue told him that while she thankfully wasn't a virgin she was also discerning with her lovers. She'd been honoring him with her trust from the moment she walked through his hospital door and helped him break out and as he made his way up from her breast to her neck he was reminded of just why she shouldn't trust him – Wade's cut. He stilled and gazed at it.

Jennifer felt the subtle shift in Duke, his stillness and wary tension pulling her out of her orgasm induced haze to look at him. He was gazing at her neck. At the cut his brother had put on her, moments before killing him. Her own breath stilled and his eyes raised to meet hers.

"I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Duke."

"Yeah, it is. In so many ways it is." His eyes closed he bent to administer the most tender kiss to the wound. Jennifer drew in a ragged breath and tried not to cry. Everything he'd done from the moment she'd got him out of the hospital had been to protect her. Including ordering her to get off his boat. He'd killed his own brother to protect her and didn't blame her for it or hold it against her. He'd been acting out of guilt and fear. She didn't know what to say.

He placed another soft kiss just below her ear. "But I'm not going to let anyone else hurt you again." And then he claimed her mouth again with his own and took her with one long thrust that had her gasping for breath. He was filling her a little too much and her ecstasy was slipping into the discomfort zone.

Duke felt her petite frame flinch and tremble beneath him and around him and blew a silent curse through his teeth. He repressed the urge to thrust again and rebalanced himself to free one hand, fondling her clit while he withdrew slightly to give her a chance to relax and adjust to him. When her breathing quickened again and her hips resumed their undulation he clasped her to him and rolled to his back, letting her set the pace and rhythm. And, if it was possible, hardening further with the sight of her poised above him. She was beautiful. Her ivory skin flushed and glowing with the sheen of perspiration and painted gold with the setting sun. She moved and her small breasts made a subtle bounce with her movement. Her rosebud mouth was parted in an inviting O and he didn't resist, he pulled her down and kissed her as he met her hips thrust for thrust. She freed herself from his grasp and her head fell back as her body bowed and this time her orgasm made her scream, her body clenching around him so tight he knew he didn't have much restraint left. He rose to meet her and captured her lingering cry with his mouth, reveling in the press of her breasts against his chest, holding her though the tremors of her climax only to change their position again. This time he didn't hold back and promised himself he would go over the edge with her.

As he rose above her she raised her knees further and opened herself more to him, her eyes closed and her mouth, now swollen from kissing curved into a smile. His hands found hers on the bed and clasped them there above her head. When he brought her back to the edge her eyes opened wide.

"Again?" He could only answer with another thrust, and yet another. Until they both went over that edge together, his name a whimpered prayer on her lips.

Long moments later when they were both recovered from their trembling, Duke fell to his side and withdrew from her to remove the condom. She protested his temporary departure to dispose of it and curled into him when he returned to pull down the covers and tuck them both in. He laid on his back and held her to him relaxing under the steadying rhythm of her heartbeat and brush of her breath. Her hand had come to rest on his stomach and he clasped it in his own hand and brought it to his mouth, kissing her delicate fingers before drawing one in, giving it a languorous suck and savoring the trace of her perfume that lingered on her wrist. She responded by pressing her own kiss to his chest. And he was surprised to find himself hardening for her again. She soon registered the same surprise.

"Again?" She repeated. He soon repeated his previous answer. This time he was able to spend more time with her. Lavishing her body with every kind of attention he'd thought of since he'd met her. When another condom joined the first he fell exhausted into bed with her. Jennifer fell asleep as soon as she was tucked against his body.

When he awoke he checked the time. He'd been asleep for an hour. Feeling restless he pressed a kiss to her cheek and eased out of bed, dressing and retrieving the hair tie as he went. He checked in on her before going topside to start retrieving her stuff. She was smiling in her sleep. He was pretty sure she would stay.

Chapter 2

"Um, before we leave I'm going to use the ladies room." She leaned into Duke's kiss on her forehead and went down the hall. Duke watched her for a moment and called Jack.

"Can I get my bilge pump in today man?"

"You're still wanting to leave?" Jack asked him.

"I just want to go out for a couple of days."

"Yeah, I think I could do with that myself."

"Well, if you do, it's going to be your own boat, mine's going to be a little crowded."

"That wouldn't happen to be with a pretty brunette would it?"

"Just get the bilge pump over would you? Also…. Dwight tossed my ship in a trouble induced paranoid rage, do you think you could…?"

"You might want to drop by the Gull and get a bottle of your good stuff."

"Thanks buddy. Is Aiden ok?"

"He's a little shook up but he'll bounce."

"Good to hear, I'll see you in a few." Duke turned to find Dwight eyeing him.

"You want an extra hand picking up? I mean, it's the least I could do."

"I think I've had enough police action for one day man."

"I promise, unofficial, off the record…"

"Yeah, it's the least you could do."

"I'm really sorry Duke."

"It wasn't really you, 'Squatch."

"No. But it was the worst of me. Like not only was I seeing and hearing stuff that wasn't there but I couldn't filter my reactions either."

Duke barely heard him, he was gazing over his shoulder at Jennifer coming back down the hall. She was trying to put her brave face on but her apprehension was evident. Dwight followed Duke's concerned gaze.

"I'll, uh, meet you two there."

"Meet us?" Jennifer looked questioningly at Duke.

"Yeah, Dwight here sort of trashed my boat while he was…."

"Oh. Right. Yeah. I remember." She turned to Dwight. "Well, thanks for coming back to help."

"Well, it's the least I could – " He stopped when he noticed the cut on her neck. "What is..?" He stepped forward with his hand outstretched to move her collar for a better look, only to be cut off by Duke stepping in to block him, his eyes flashing a warning.

Dwight caught himself and stepped back. "Sorry. I'm sorry Jennifer." She looked stricken and confused and something clicked inside of Dwight. "Is that from Wade?"

"Yeah," Duke answered, his voice low and cold. "It is."

"Got it. Enough said. And I feel like an ass."

"Good," Duke murmured. He turned around to Jennifer. "You ready to go?"

"Yes, definitely." She took his proffered hand and walked with him, pleased when he entwined their fingers.

In his car she was silent, looking either at her hands in her lap or out the window. Her hands, he noted, were clasping and unclasping. Her fists would clench to white knuckles and release. He reached over and took one of those hands in his, kissing it and not releasing it.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He kept his eyes on the road, trying to give her as much emotional space as possible while he held her hand in a different attempt at reassurance.

She looked at him for a long moment. "Not really. Not yet."

"It's ok. Whenever, IF ever you're ready." He knew she was in a vulnerable spot. He'd taken enough advantage of her and if she never wanted to mention the day again he'd be only too happy to accommodate.

"I thought you told me you wanted to send me back to the psych ward."

It was spoken so quietly he almost didn't hear her.

"What?!"

"Right after that guy grabbed me, and you, you threatened him, didn't you?"

"Darling, that wasn't a threat. It was a promise."

She finally looked at him and there was a hint of a smile to her face, though it didn't last.

"I saw you in a straight jacket, taunting me. You were telling me that soon I was going to be in one. That was right after you told me how much better Audrey was than me, how much…"

"Hotter." He finished. He'd pulled up at the Gull and took note that neither Nathan or Audrey were here yet. He hoped they were alright. Putting the truck in park he let it idle while he turned to her. "You're not going back to the psych ward. Not while I'm around to stop it from happening. You're not crazy and you never were. Audrey is not hotter than you and as far as I know the only thing she might possibly be better at than you is firing a gun. And she's better than most men at that. And I don't really care about that kind of thing. Unless she's firing at me. In which case I would care a lot."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Summary for chapter two: During episode 10, while Audrey is finding out that without The Troubles Duke is Officer Sexy, Nathan is Dr. Hansen, Dream Gynecologist and Vince is apparently flamboyantly gay…. Duke and Jennifer head out to have hot sex on the _Rouge_. Minimal plot development here folks. And if character development occurs it will be because they are willful creatures all.

(At some point, the TV show will reveal what Vince's trouble is and it probably won't be the one that I give him. But other than being able to pop ink on his arm as a whim it seemed useful that he would be able to "see" another's trouble. And maybe anything else I might need him to be able to do later.)

"Um, before we leave I'm going to use the ladies room." She leaned into Duke's kiss on her forehead and went down the hall. Duke watched her for a moment and called Jack.

"Can I get my bilge pump in today man?"

"You're still wanting to leave?" Jack asked him.

"I just want to go out for a couple of days."

"Yeah, I think I could do with that myself."

"Well, if you do, it's going to be your own boat, mine's going to be a little crowded."

"That wouldn't happen to be with a pretty brunette would it?"

"Just get the bilge pump over would you? Also…. Dwight tossed my ship in a trouble induced paranoid rage, do you think you could…?"

"You might want to drop by the Gull and get a bottle of your good stuff."

"Thanks buddy. Is Aiden ok?"

"He's a little shook up but he'll bounce."

"Good to hear, I'll see you in a few." Duke turned to find Dwight eyeing him.

"You want an extra hand picking up? I mean, it's the least I could do."

"I think I've had enough police action for one day man."

"I promise, unofficial, off the record…"

"I want to clear the bay before dark so, yeah, it's the least you could do."

"I'm really sorry Duke."

"It wasn't really you, 'Squatch."

"No. But it was the worst of me. Like not only was I seeing and hearing stuff that wasn't there but I couldn't filter my reactions either."

Duke barely heard him, he was gazing over his shoulder at Jennifer coming back down the hall. She was trying to put her brave face on but her apprehension was evident. Dwight followed Duke's concerned gaze.

"I'll, uh, meet you two there."

"Meet us?" Jennifer looked questioningly at Duke.

"Yeah, Dwight here sort of trashed my boat while he was…."

"Oh. Right. Yeah. I remember." She turned to Dwight. "Well, thanks for coming back to help."

"Well, it's the least I could – " He stopped when he noticed the cut on her neck. "What is..?" He stepped forward with his hand outstretched to move her collar for a better look, only to be cut off by Duke stepping in to block him, his eyes flashing a warning.

Dwight caught himself and stepped back. "Sorry. I'm sorry Jennifer." She looked stricken and confused and something clicked inside of Dwight. "Is that from Wade?"

"Yeah," Duke answered, his voice low and cold. "It is."

"Got it. Enough said. And I feel like an ass."

"Good," Duke murmured. He turned around to Jennifer. "You ready to go?"

"Yes, definitely." She took his proffered hand and walked with him, pleased when he entwined their fingers.

In his car she was silent, looking either at her hands in her lap or out the window. Her hands, he noted, were clasping and unclasping. Her fists would clench to white knuckles and release. He reached over and took one of those hands in his, kissing it and not releasing it.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He kept his eyes on the road, trying to give her as much emotional space as possible while he held her hand in a different attempt at reassurance.

She looked at him for a long moment. "Not really. Not yet."

"It's ok. Whenever, IF ever you're ready." He knew she was in a vulnerable spot. He'd taken enough advantage of her and if she never wanted to mention the day again he'd be only too happy to accommodate.

"I thought you told me you wanted to send me back to the psych ward."

It was spoken so quietly he almost didn't hear her.

"What?!"

"Right after that guy grabbed me, and you, you threatened him, didn't you?"

"Darling, that wasn't a threat. It was a promise."

She finally looked at him and there was a hint of a smile to her face, though it didn't last.

"I saw you in a straight jacket, taunting me. You were telling me that soon I was going to be in one. That was right after you told me how much better Audrey was than me, how much…"

"Hotter." He finished. He'd pulled up at the Gull and took note that neither Nathan or Audrey were here yet. He hoped they were alright. Putting the truck in park he let it idle while he turned to her. "You're not going back to the psych ward. Not while I'm around to stop it from happening. You're not crazy and you never were. Audrey is not hotter than you and as far as I know the only thing she might possibly be better at than you is firing a gun. And she's better than most men at that. And I don't really care about that kind of thing. Unless she's firing at me. In which case I would care a lot."

This time her smile was real. "Now give me just a minute to grab a couple of things from inside and make arrangements for the next couple of days."

Her brow furrowed in confusion. "Something else I'll explain soon."

Her sassy and mischievious smile lit across her face. "I like how you explain things."

He grinned back at her. "I'll, uh, I'll remember that."

Duke made fast work of setting up staff for the next few days and grabbed two bottles of Glenfiddich 21 Year Old. There was still no sign of Audrey and Nathan and he hoped they were just doing slightly illegal things at Haven Lookout. He caught sight of Vince and Dave on the patio of the Gull and made his way over to them.

"Say… when was Jennifer supposed to start at The Herald?"

"Technically she already has," Dave answered. "We're expecting her tomorrow!"

Vince was studying him carefully. "Would your interest have anything to do with Jennifer wearing your shirt earlier today?"

"My interest has to do with getting her away from this nightmare of a town for a couple of days."

"Well! It's very irregular for a new employee to get a four day weekend right out of the gate!" Dave exclaimed.

"It is," Vince agreed. "Especially one that is on salary. As in – NOT on hourly. How would you approach that as an employer, Duke?"

"Don't start me with guys. None of my employees sprung me out of a mental ward, found and opened an inter-dimensional door to save Audrey, or have been through what Jennifer has been through in the past couple of weeks, let alone days… Hell, let alone TODAY. This whole fucking town owes her a day off."

Dave looked like he might have an apoplectic fit but Vince burst out laughing and casually waved Duke off, returning his attention to whatever antique looking tome he was reading now. "Your little bird is free to fly – or sail – away with you."

Duke didn't even bother to say thanks and scowled as he turned away. He didn't look back at Vince's parting shot either, "I'm glad she has you to protect her. I have a feeling Jennifer's importance to this town is yet to be discovered."

_How the hell am I supposed to protect her now?_ Obviously the Teague brothers hadn't heard that the Crocker Curse was gone and buried in a shallow grave.

"You know, I'm glad Duke isn't alone now, he's had a rough go of it." Dave remarked to his brother.

"It's not about to get any easier for him either, I'm afraid something terrible has happened."

"What?!"

"We won't discuss it here, come on, let's go."

By the time Duke and Jennifer got back to the _Rouge_, Jack and Dwight were both there. "I can't believe you got Vince and Dave to give me the time off…. I can't believe I'm _salary_! I don't even know what kind of health insurance I have."

"Well, they're old coots, but they have their moments of being reasonable. Listen, are you cool with this? I didn't even ask you if it was ok but I thought…"

"You thought right, Duke. I need a mini vacation."

"Yeah. Only in Haven would you need a vacation before you even start your new job."

She smiled and hopped out of the truck. "Let's get the _Rouge _sea worthy, Skipper!"

Duke smiled after her, "I always was a Mary-Anne kind of guy."

Between the four of them it took surprisingly little amount of time to clean up the mess Dwight made and Jack had the bilge pump installed in no time.

Before ushering Dwight and Jack off the Rouge Duke opened one of the whiskey bottles and offered up a round.

"Uh, what are we drinking to?" Dwight asked.

"Life!" Jack enthused. "Troublesome and glorious!"

The sentiment was echoed with varying degrees of enthusiasm, and the party broke up. Duke handed Jack the un-opened bottle and waved him off.

As he'd hoped, Duke got the Rouge out of the bay before dark and headed for open sea.

"So where are we headed?" Jennifer asked from the doorway.

"Just a little past the light pollution from the main land. Ever see the night sky from the open ocean?"

"No, pretty much all the sailing I've done was over before sunset."

"You're in for a treat then, come here. Ever steer a ship?"

"Not this size."

"It's not much different, come on."

He stood behind her and guided her hands on the wheel for a time before settling his own on her hips.

"This is SO cool."

"Glad you like it. It's kind of an important skill for living on a boat."

Jennifer let the mention slide. She didn't know what she and Duke were doing. And she didn't want to worry about it. She wanted to have fun with this. When he was confident she had the boat steady he kissed her cheek.

"I'm going to go below and get a few things."

About an hour later, she noticed that the dark was a lot darker than before. Duke had rejoined her on the bridge and instructed her on bringing the forward of the ship around to pointing south. Then he showed her how to drop anchor and set the safety light.

When the boat was steadied and ready he reached into the pocket of his sweater and brought out a dark scrap of cloth.

"Is that a….?"

"Blindfold? Yes. Do you trust me?"

She didn't even hesitate. "Yes, although I thought the point was to SEE the night sky out here."

He laughed. "You will, but I have a little surprise for you."

Instead of guiding her, Duke carried a blindfolded Jennifer out to the deck and set her gently down next to the pallet he'd created. He eased her down with him into a sitting position and took off her boots.

"Duke!" She laughed, "am I going to get to actually see anything, any time soon?"

"Patience, Grasshopper."

"You did NOT just call me that." He laughed behind her as he eased her back against him. She felt his hands at the side of her face, poised to remove the blindfold.

"You ready?"

"I think we've established that."

"Okay, okay…" Duke leaned to the side so he could catch the look on her face and lifted the blind fold.

"Oh!" Jennifer couldn't believe her eyes. With her head tilted back onto Duke's shoulder all she could see was the deep blue black of the night sky illuminated with the diamond brilliance of billions of stars. She didn't care that her mouth was probably hanging open. She'd never seen anything so beautiful in her life. She wanted to say how beautiful it was but all she could manage was the word itself: "Beautiful."

"Yes. Very." Duke had seen the sky like this a hundred, maybe a thousand times. It was Jennifer who was taking his breath away now. She was illuminated by the light of the candles he had placed around. He loved the way her skin and eyes seem to draw light in and glow with it. She looked like she was illuminated from within, a living source that he could touch. So he did. He brought his finger tips to her cheek and savored the soft smooth texture down to her throat. When she melted into him he felt his blood surge. His caress continued until he was cupping her breast through her shirt, with a gentle squeeze he rendered a soft moan from her before she turned toward him for a kiss.

Jennifer felt Duke's familiar heat wrap itself around her. His hand moved to unbutton her shirt and she moved to help him, breaking their kiss. He was still behind her and he broke the kiss to watch her undress herself. She didn't know if she shivered from the chill in the air or her sudden awareness of her own vulnerability, stripped naked before him while he was still fully dressed. One of his hands stroked her and the other kept her neck cradled in a grip that felt almost controlling. She looked at his face and almost stopped breathing, she now recognized that dark look from earlier: possessive. Duke was possessive of her? She'd noticed he was protective of her, but possessive? While she was trying to figure out what to do with that, Duke lifted her back and against himself. She was entirely supported by him now, his thigh between her legs and she was grateful he was wearing soft and worn denim. She felt his mouth at her ear and he nipped lightly on the lobe before whispering to her.

"I want you to keep watching the stars. Ok? Just keep watching the stars." He caged her neck and lower jaw in one hand, holding her immobile with a gentle if unyielding grasp. His free hand continued to roam her body, caressing and molding her breasts, skilled fingers pebbling her nipples until she was breathless and restless. Without thought she ground her pelvis on his thigh, creating the friction she was suddenly desperate for on her clit.

"Duke!" She tried to move her head, wanting to kiss him, see him, wanting change her position so she could throw him down, strip him and screw his brains out.

"Ah-ah," he negated her attempt. "Just look at the stars darling, enjoy the sight."

Maybe she could convince him? "What about you?" Maybe she could play on his self-admitted selfish nature.

"I'm definitely enjoying the sight." Duke chuckled low when she blushed scarlet.

"Well, I'm not exactly…."

"What? Aren't the stars pretty?"

"Oh my God. Duke!" Jennifer was going crazy. His hand felt great on her breasts but she wanted him to touch her lower.

"What sweetheart, something else you need?"

That free hand of his landed on her thigh, so tantalizingly close she almost growled. She tried to shift her hips toward him but his hand remained steady on her thigh.

"What do you want Jennifer?" His voice wasn't much more than a rasp. Duke knew he was pushing her into uncharted territory, and that he was doing it perhaps a little too soon, but he wanted this night to be unforgettable to her. Something they could both cling to in the uncertain future that was life in Haven.

"I want you to touch me." She whispered.

"Show me where." She went so still her breath was hardly noticeable. "Come on," he coaxed, "show me where."

She wasn't looking at the stars now. Her eyes were glued to his, full of self doubt and pleading. He wasn't going to walk this back though. He kept his gaze steady. "Show me Jennifer."

At last her own hand moved. Almost as a nervous flutter she brought her hand the delicate flesh she'd wanted him to touch. With a nervous swallow and her eyes boring into him she began the most intimate of acts. He let his eyes travel over her to take in the sight and almost broke apart with it. He wanted to turn her over, open his pants and shove his cock so far into her that she'd feel him for days. But this was for her. And by giving her this hour, and the next 48 hours he'd have a better prize - her. So instead of giving into his urges he looked back into her eyes and watched as she pushed through inner barriers and insecurities to pleasure herself against his body. And when she was neared her most stripped down and vulnerable point his hand joined hers, not letting her remove it. She gasped and shuddered, so close to her release.

"Look back at the stars, love. Look." She did. "Have you ever seen anything that beautiful?"

She shook her head, "no," she sobbed, so close to coming but he held her off.

"No?"

"Duke…!" She was practically begging him now for release. Still he wouldn't let her, he guided her hand around and into the entrance of her core, keeping her dangling. Her back was fully arched now, her hips in a state of constant undulation as she sought release. With her head tipped back on his shoulder her throat was fully exposed to him, his hand resting on it, his thumb grazing her lower lip. She flicked her tongue out to lick the tip of his thumb, a temptress' trick.

"You're far, far more beautiful than that sky Jennifer." And then he thrust his fingers into her, letting her own work her clit as he shifted the hand that held her throat and penetrated her beautiful red mouth with his finger there too. His mouth moved to her neck and he bit in, just hard enough to deliver the final blow and then watched as her orgasm crashed into her like a tidal wave. Her eyes were closed as she screamed around his hand and bit into his own finger. The sting of it was enough to shred the last reserves of his control and he twisted around her, laying her on the bedding and freeing his erection from his pants to claim her again. She was still coming from her first orgasm when he thrust into her. With her core clenching him that tight, it was impossible to tell where he ended and she began. She screamed again and he felt her milking him so he went over the edge with her. Calling out her name as he collapsed against her.

He didn't know if it was hours or minutes later when he felt her twitch beneath him and he quietly cursed himself. First, for possibly crushing her. Second, for not even bothering to take his damned clothes off. And, most importantly, for not having a condom on to get rid of. The first two he could and did fix as soon as he thought was humanly possible given the circumstances. The last one…. Shit. As soon as he rejoined her under the covers he pulled her back to him. The night had grown chilly and unless she wanted to go into his cabin they would need each other's closeness along with the blankets to stay warm. The idea had seemed romantic at the time. Now that he had royally fucked up by being a cad of the most callow sort he figured he might be lucky if she didn't charge down below deck and lock him out up here.

"Um… Jennifer?"

"Mm?" She opened her eyes and they seemed to glisten with too much moisture. But she looked happier than he'd seen her and more content. She looked like she trusted him. And he couldn't bring himself to spoil the moment. He sighed.

"You really are beautiful." She smiled and her eyes slid shut again.

"Mm, thanks," she murmured, burrowing in close while he pulled a thick layers of blankets on and around them. "You are too, Duke. But next time take off your clothes."

"Ok."

"And you have to split the cost of a Plan-B."

I'm already working on Chapter Three, 36 Hours of Dukifer Smut.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Notes: I really hope you enjoy this because it was tough to get through. I wanted to deliver on the smut promise (so if you're not an adult, please leave now) as well as develop Duke and Jennifer and then insert some plot movement before closing the chapter. As always, I don't own the characters or Haven or the Rouge and I'm making no money off of this story. And right about here is where I'll be diverging from the onscreen story line.

Stay

Chapter 3

Jennifer woke to find herself still in Duke's arms, their legs entwined. He was asleep, looking at peace. The sky was still dark but silvering over his shoulder and she slowly shifted to reclining on her elbow to watch the sun rise. She wondered if she woke Duke for the event, if he would make it as memorable as seeing the ocean sky at night. Instead she breathed in the cold air and felt the contrast of the warmth she felt under the covers with Duke and the chill where her skin was exposed. She'd always liked contrasts like that. She'd loved walking out of her air-conditioned office into a meltingly hot summer day. She used the difference to center herself and stopped putting off the thoughts that she had been keeping dormant for the last day or two.

First of all, falling for, and following around a guy was NOT her. And she needed at some point to sort out her feelings for Duke. Gratitude: He was proof she wasn't crazy and then he had acted as a buffer between her and Nathan. He had protected her in a variety of ways, finally killing his own brother when Wade had attacked her. Lust: That was easy. He was hot. Friendship: They got along really well. They had a similar sense of humor and it was easy to talk to him. But he hadn't trusted her with either the secret of his Trouble or with the circumstances of Wade's death. In fact, he hadn't trusted his supposed long time friends either. She still didn't know what he had done with Wade's body though she had gathered that Dwight did. On the other hand, he had accepted her too. Without reservation. Duke didn't trust that people would accept him the way that he seemed to accept others without effort. Those were the easy points to assemble though not necessarily easy to consider and sort out. And none of them necessarily led to romantic love. So she was willing to give a relationship a shot but she needed to NOT feel so dependent upon him.

Also, she wanted to understand who she really was. Why had her parents given her up? The two people in Haven who seemed to serve as the resident experts were able to unearth her birth parents but seemed to have no recollection of any family Trouble like hers: Hearing the goings on of the mysterious barn. And despite the fact that the barn was gone and there was nothing more to hear, plainly her Trouble still existed because her blood was able to trigger both Wade and Duke's Trouble. So what would that mean for her in the future? What did it mean for anyone in Haven? And who was she that Agent Howard would handle her adoption. Could her adoption have been truly legal since he had handled it?

And finally, did she really want to live in Haven? It would mean, at least for the time being, that she would be relying entirely on Duke. And that wasn't healthy for either of them for a variety of reasons. She was good at meeting people and making friends on her own but it didn't seem like there was a lot of time for that in Haven. Especially now that the Troubles were getting worse. She had, at one time, been pleasantly independent. She didn't think she was generally more insecure than the next person but she had hated remembering her actions, even her thoughts from before. What _was _that thing that the big man had put into her head? The hallucinations were bad enough but she hated the part of her that seemed to come forward in the midst of it all. She'd accused Duke of seducing her for her "supernatural connections" when to all intents and purposes that connection had been gone for days before he had taken her to his bed. She had goaded Nathan to kill a man for God's sake! And worst of all, she couldn't be certain that those actions were all that foreign to her.

Feeling a little ashamed, Jennifer gently disentangled herself from Duke to get up. She pulled off the top quilt to wrap around herself and went to stand at the side of the boat to watch as the sun crested the horizon; wincing a bit as she walked. She and Duke had been a bit vigorous in the last twelve to sixteen hours. Much like last night, she'd never seen the sky like this before. She could have sworn there was a choir singing, it was so beautiful. Moments later she felt Duke's arms around her, drawing her close. She turned to look at up at him and saw him wrapped in his own blanket, smiling down at her.

"Good morning, Starshine," she quipped.

"Mmhmm… The earth says 'hello,'" Duke cordially rejoined.

She chuckled softly and nestled into his arms, handing her own blanket off to him so he could wrap the two of them in both blankets. Making for better comfort against the morning chill. Pulled back against him, she softened in his embrace, feeling pleasantly supported in the gentle rocking of the boat on the ocean waves. It was another satisfying contrast: that of feeling adrift while being held secure. She felt him kiss her on top of her head as his hands settled around her waist.

"You hungry?" He asked after a moment.

It hadn't really occurred to her yet but she was starving and told him as much.

"How about we take a shower and then make breakfast?" At her amused and mockingly skeptical look he added, "out at sea, you have to conserve water."

"Oh, well, if it's NECESSARY…" Duke laughed outright as they turned away from the morning sun and went below for a shower.

The shower was close with two people in it. Close enough that while Duke was giving her the best scalp massage she'd ever had while he shampooed her hair Jennifer became aware of his arousal. She wondered how long of a shower they could take together. He was too tall for her to be able to wash his hair but she could definitely see herself rubbing soap all over him. So far, he reacted fairly strongly to pretty much anything she did that was sexual, which gave her some reassurance that he had kept his illicit activities to poker and smuggling. She was fairly certain that for all his swagger, Duke wasn't really the kind of guy to take multitudes of random women to bed.

When her hair was rinsed of shampoo, she politely maneuvered herself to the side enough for him to take his place under the stream. With his eyes closed and the water sluicing over his skin he was frankly breath taking. She let her eyes take in the sight for a moment. Duke was built like a god. _How many handstands does a guy have to do to look like THAT?_ She moved to grab the soap and let her body brush against him. She made herself hold his gaze while she rubbed a lather onto her hands and then glided them over the taut plains of his torso. She watched the bubbles and water glide down and over each powerful crest and ridge, sliding further down to that dusky trail of hair that led _down._

With her gaze following she heard him murmur her name. Did that sound like a warning? She raised her gaze back up to meet his, her hands following an upward path and she wasn't sure if the breath he sighed was relief or frustration. Wanting to see how far she could push him she stepped a little closer and rose up onto her toes to caress his shoulders, gliding her hands down over his arms all the way to his elbows before traveling back up, curving her fingers around to squeeze lightly as she both admired his strength and sought to massage him. She pulled away from his gaze and again took in the sight of the skin she was touching, the skin she had tasted. She watched as her own small hands kneaded the muscles in his shoulders and took the final step closer, bringing their bodies back into full contact to reach up and around to lightly trace and knead at the back of his neck and shoulders. She repeated the cycle until she felt him press forward against her, pushing her back against the shower wall and caged in his arms. Then she brought her hands lower, pressing along his spine, her finger tips brushing the curve of his ass, teasing them both. When she chanced a look up at him she was momentarily dazzled; his eyes were closed and his head tilted back as though he luxuriated in her ministrations. She had the feeling of having some kind of wild creature in her hands; beautiful, powerful and potentially dangerous. And Duke had repeatedly given her only the best of himself. He'd used all of this gorgeous strength to protect and defend her and then to pleasure her beyond imagination. She took her hands down again and this time all the way as she raised even further up to place a kiss the base of his throat. He growled low in his throat and shifted, leaning further forward to rest his forearms on the wall behind her and bringing his hands down to frame her face. She kept kissing him - taking in the taste and feel of the skin along his collar bone, dipping down to his chest, back up along the column of his throat. She felt his fingers clench in her hair before releasing her again. His breathing had gone a little shallow, the momentary relaxation evaporating as his erection twitched and seemed to harden between them in anticipation.

_ Don't grab her hair. Don't push her down. Enjoy her, savor her. _Her mouth moved a little further south as her hands gripped a little tighter on his ass. A man with a healthy imagination could believe she would be taking that kiss all the way down. _Oh please, yes. Don't grab her hair. Don't push her down… _He felt her shift lower in front of him. Holding onto his restraint he squeezed his hands into fists against the wall and tried to endure what had now began to feel like an assault. She was driving him crazy. He wanted to open his eyes to find her mouth encircling him, her own eyes looking up at him… _DON'T fucking push her down!_ The hot water was thrumming against his back but her mouth was like a burner against him and he needed her…There! He felt her first hesitant kiss on the crown of his cock, an investigative tongue flickering out onto the slit there and… did she actually just lap up his fluid…? She did it again, only this time using more of her tongue. She pulled back a bit and seemed to pause _Don't grab her hair… Open your eyes and just look at her._ He did and damn near unraveled on the spot. Her eyes were trained on where her mouth was returning and her perfect kiss-me mouth was parted to take him in. He just refrained from thrusting his hips toward her. This time she took the head into her mouth and actually fucking _swirled _that hot, velvet tongue of hers around.

Jennifer knew she had him when this time, the growl wasn't low in his throat but accompanied by something that sounded suspiciously like a curse in another language. She chanced a look up at him and barely contained a smile at the fire she saw in his eyes. His teeth were bared and he was all but snarling at her. She held his gaze as she moved back toward him again, taking a little more of him into her mouth and this time hollowing her cheeks to suck at him as she moved back up his cock, releasing him with a barely audible pop. Her hands were still on his ass and she was blatantly teasing him now, not even bothering to try to hide a smile as she looked up at him.

"Oh, Honey, you have no idea what you're really playing with." His own smile had gone a little feral, he reminded her more of pirate now than at any time since she'd met him. She took a moment to look him over, studying every ridge on the length of him.

"You know, Duke, this isn't my first blow job…. Is it yours?" _Don't grab her hair…._ That sassy smile of hers was beckoning. "Weren't you worried about conserving water? And I AM really hungry…" Her eyes trailed back to his cock and then back to his own gaze and she had the nerve to bat those long eye lashes at him. _Don't push her down…_

"Jennifer!" His own smile was starting to look a little frayed.

"Is there something you need?" Her hands had released him from behind and were splayed on his thighs. She had tilted her head to the side and was giving his inner thigh little licks and kisses. _Okay then, don't grab her by the hair HARD._ Instead, he turned to shut off the water before reaching down to grasp her under each arm and haul her upward. Holding her close her nipped at her ear before telling her exactly what he needed.

"I need you on your knees with your soft little hand wrapped around the base of my cock while you wrap those beautiful lips of yours around the top, sucking me dry. I need to feel your tongue licking over every inch of me. And even then, after I come right on that talented tongue I'm probably STILL going to need you on your back with your legs open and I'll STILL need to thrust into that beautiful pussy of yours until you're begging me for release and long after that when you're begging me to STOP." He paused to bite into the juncture of her neck and shoulder. "And even then, I'm not sure I'll be able to." Now he did twine her wet locks in his fingers and used the leverage to tilt her head back so he could swallow her shocked gasp with a kiss before he set his mouth to her neck. She moaned and he moved to those beautiful lips of hers and kissed her again until they were both breathless. He carried her out of the shower and back to his room and when he set her down he took a step back, giving her room to see what she would do. She still _looked _shocked and he was a little worried he might have just scared her off.

"You okay?" he whispered.

"You promise?" She asked.

For a moment he could only answer with a look of confusion. "Wait. What?"

She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to one of his nipples, causing a shudder to through him. She moved to the other and murmured, "I said, 'you promise?'" Her kisses trailed lower.

"P-promise what?" He felt her palm low on his belly and squeezed his eyes shut as she teased at the dark curls at his base. She stopped everything and stood up straight.

"All that stuff you just said ten seconds ago? I'm asking if that's a promise."

He was pretty sure he was going to die. _What a way to go… _"Sweetheart, I don't have to promise you, it's just a fact."

"Huh. Well, I guess we'll see." And then he wished he was lying down because what she did next damn near made a liar out of him.

With one hand wrapped around him, the other keeping a gentle caress on his balls and her mouth and tongue doing things no mortal woman ought to be able to do… She may have been the one on her knees but he was totally at her mercy.

The sun was high in the sky before his eyes opened again. She was still asleep, and smiling. His own lips curled, he'd proven to her he was a man of his word. Duke rose and dressed and, still wanting breakfast food, went to the kitchen.

It was the aroma of brewing coffee that woke Jennifer. When she got up she sighed in exasperation. No clothes again. Which meant, again, finding one of Duke's shirts to wear. She wondered what he would do if she borrowed his pants instead. Of course, she could just walk (naked) to her room where her stuff had been hastily piled during last night's clean up flurry. She opted for a compromise: putting on Duke's shirt to go to her room and put on some clean clothes. She made it to the kitchen when he distracted her with a cup of fresh brewed coffee.

"Oohh… Yes. Thank you." He responded with one of his adorably sexy knowing smiles.

"You know," he grinned, "I'm never taking a shower with you again."

"Never?" She feigned shock and faked a pout.

"You, sweetheart, are dangerous. You're the reason old time sailors thought women were bad luck to have on board."

Jennifer almost choked on her coffee as she laughed. "Did we really waste that much water?"

"Oh, it's not just the water. You're too distracting; running around without any clothes on half the time…"

"Well, that would be easy to fix if my clothes weren't perpetually packed away, mister!"

"Yeah, I was going to see if you wanted to get your stuff settled in today."

"MmHm, yes. But first, let me go get some clothes ON, so I don't over-distract you, Sailor."

"Before you do that, I have one very important question for you: pancakes or waffles?"

"Waffles. With sausage… As long as it's not vegan."

"Perfect. You go get dressed, we'll do breakfast, unpack your stuff and then I'll show you the secret passage ways around the _Rouge_."

"Seriously? That's so cool. It's like a floating Scooby Doo set."

When breakfast was over and cleaned up, Jennifer started to unpack her things. They agreed she would decide what would go into her room, they would both decide what went through the rest of the living space and Duke would get everything else into the cargo hold. The things she had collected from the attic of her birth-parents' old house she decided to keep in her room. She didn't know if anything in there would help her to understand her origins any better or not and wanted to have it convenient so she could peruse it in her down time.

Having limited space made for much simplification in unpacking. The most difficult part was prioritizing her clothes. She thought about trying to convince Duke to give up some of his space but felt that would officially put a weird spin on their relationship. And she didn't even want to go near Wade's room for now - emotionally or physically. Within a couple of hours everything was done except storing things in the hold and Duke insisted on Jennifer following him, where he showed her the passage way that led from the hold to the corridor, so you could never get locked in. Then there was the passage in the state room that went up to the bridge and finally a passage from the chart room back down to the hold. Taking the passage from the hold back up to the chart room and then the deck again, Jennifer shimmied out after Duke laughing.

"Okay, that was really fun. Do you have any Scooby Snacks?"

"We could make some special brownies later if you want."

She gaped at him for a moment not sure if she believed him or what she wanted to believe before he started laughing. "I'm kidding. If I kept that around THAT'S what I would have used to get you all relaxed and able to listen for Audrey back when she was still in the barn."

Her smile fell and her face took on a guarded look. Duke held his breath for a moment. She seemed to be working something out in her mind as she turned her eyes out to sea for the moment. He had a feeling he knew what was coming and braced for it. Jennifer wasn't the kind of woman to let something like this fester.

"You were in love with her?"

"I thought I was." She watched him for a moment.

"But, you do love her." He nodded. She returned the nod and took a deep breath as if to brace herself.

"I don't want to be a rebound or a consolation prize or something."

"You're not."

"I don't want to have to depend on you either." She seemed to exhale in a little bit of frustration but he held his peace for a moment longer. "I have to build my own life here Duke, I can't build it on you."

"I don't want you to move off the Rouge."

She nodded. "And I won't. At least not for now. But I'm going to get my own place. And you're going to have to trust me."

"I do. You're going to have to trust me too, though."

"I do, Duke. I do trust you."

"But you think I could be using you as a rebound from Audrey?"

"Not really. I was really afraid of that though. I was so afraid of that yesterday that I said and did terrible things."

"That wasn't your fault."

"Maybe not, but whatever that guy did to me…"

"I know."

"No, you don't know. Not really. That thing brought out the worst in me and it's like I was hardly there to stop myself."

"I know, sweetheart. I know what it's like to feel something so dark in you come up to the surface like that and…"

"You were always able to control it though. Except when Wade… And I'm just so scared that one day you're going to wake up and realize that I'm not worth it, that I'm a _lame _consolation prize that cost you your brother, and…"

"Enough. NO, Jennifer. NO!" He stepped forward and held her face in his hands, his thumb pads brushing just under her eyes where tears were threatening to gather. "What happened with Wade was… Inevitable with the path he was on. I knew I would have to take him down at some point I just tried to avoid it as long as I could. But I need you to understand something right now: I didn't kill Wade because your blood triggered my Trouble. I killed Wade because he was going to _hurt _you, or worse. When Tyler died? I was GLAD because he would have hurt you too. But before that? HE would have used you as a rebound. When Tyler was trying to take you away, I realized that _I _wanted _you._ I am not going to share you and I am NOT going to let anyone hurt you. I don't know what this is or what we are, Jennifer, I just know that I am not letting you go. I'm going to do everything I can to get you to stay. And the next time someone threatens you? If I don't kill them it won't be for lack of trying. And THAT is my choice, got it? I choose YOU."

This time when her mouth parted with surprise he kissed her. Gentle but deep and thorough. He wrapped his arms around her and didn't let go until after she was kissing him back with all her fiery spark and they were both breathless. "We good now?"

"We're good. Actually, we're… pretty awesome together - right? I don't mean the sex…"

Duke's eyebrows lifted and he started to smile. Jennifer knew she was babbling but this sense of relief was like a cork popped. "I mean the sex is - is great but we make a good team, right? At least as long as no one is putting black putty in my head."

He smiled. "I'm going to take all of that as a 'yes.'"

"Yes."

"And then I'm going to take you fishing."

"Huh?"

"Well, not really take you anywhere, we're here. But come on, I'm going to show you how to do some deep sea fishing."

"How is that different from regular fishing?"

"First, you start with a bigger pole."

"Well, I know you have that covered."

"Then you have longer, strong lines. Bigger bait…."

"Got it, everything is bigger."

"Because the fish are bigger."

"So let me ask you, since all the fishermen I knew drank a lot, are the beer cans bigger somehow too?"

"No, we don't drink beer now. We drink bourbon."

"Bourbon?"

"The really good kind."

"How do fishers ever reel anything in?"

Hours later, nothing had been caught. But they had got to see some dolphins and Jennifer squealed with delight when they got to throw some of the bait fish to them. Jennifer now knew that Duke had a secret stash of the Best of Styx and had confessed in her turn to her own stash of Barry Manilow on her iPod. As the sun dipped lower in the sky they gave up pretending to try to catch anything and went down to make dinner together, and when it was done went back up on deck to eat it.

"How much longer until sunset?" Jennifer asked. The sun was only a little above the horizon now and creating a palette of color on the western horizon.

"Not long. Why don't you watch the sunset and I'll clear off dinner."

"Oh! Duke, I can -"

"No, you only get one First Sunset at Sea so go ahead. 'Cause starting tomorrow you get to be First Mate."

"What am I now?"

"Uh… the beautiful woman I'm trying to get to be first mate?"

"Is this how you recruit all your first mates?"

"No. So maybe that's why I need one."

"Hmm… Well, sometime we'll have to go over the.. Ah.. Benefit package."

"I'll have you all over that package here in a few minutes."

"Oh my God."

"That's your usual reaction."

And with that he went below deck. Jennifer smiled after him for a moment before turning her attention to the candles left in their respective jars and holders and the bed that Duke had made last night out of a futon mattress and what appeared to be a metric ton of blankets and quilts. Most of the candles had burned themselves out of wax before guttering out so she looked around in the chartroom to find some replacements and lit them. Then she decided to create her own little surprise for Duke. Using the passage ways and some very soft footing around she managed to make it to her room and change into her favorite red bra and thong panty set with matching garter belt and black stockings. High heels, red lipstick and mascara completed the look, though she didn't risk wearing the heels while navigating the secret passage. Back up on deck, she stepped into her heels and draped herself in a blanket. The sun now appeared to be only inches above the horizon; a vivid yellow-gold orb that fanned and faded to rose and pink, and was surrounded by the remaining deep blue of the sea and the ocean. She was surprised to find herself staring into it without needing to squint. Instead she felt like she could simply stand there and take it in. Take in the light and the music.

_ The MUSIC?!_ She tried to shake it off. The barn was gone and she hadn't heard music in there anyway, just voices. She knew that it wasn't the stereo, it didn't sound that close by. And it didn't sound like anything either she or Duke had in their combined collection. This sounded distant and slightly muffled. It was beautiful though. The way she thought heaven might sound. It lulled and relaxed her and as her gaze shifted to the ocean waves she could see a trailing reflection of the sun, like a solid gold ray painted across the water. It looked to her the way the light shining through a door might if you were in a darker place. It looked like it was open…

"You feeling cold already?" Duke figured he could get used to seeing Jennifer standing on his deck, wearing one of his blankets. Were those high heels on her feet? He was glad he'd brought up champagne and glasses; it seemed his woman had a surprise in mind. She didn't respond immediately and he set the glasses down on a hatch to open the bottle. He peeled off the foil and started untwisting the wire cage, from his peripheral vision he saw her turn slowly toward him and observed that a wild sort of beauty had seemed to come over her. Her hair and her skin seemed to glow in the reddening light of the sun, a cross wind had kicked up and lifted strands of her hair all around her face, a cloud of dark fire surrounding eyes that caught and reflected the radiance of the setting sun. His hand worked automatically on opening the bottle as he took in the combined splendor of an ocean sunset and Jennifer wrapped in a fringed blanket of Tibetan weave. Her shoulders were bare and he could see red bra straps. She held the blanket gathered at the corners in her fists leaving a slit that revealed one leg up to the knee and that leg was encased in black nylon. She was standing on his boat wearing what he knew was some kind of red colored confection of sexy with black clad legs and black heels with a ribbon ankle strap, looking like a sunfire goddess. And she was his.

The mysterious music forgotten for now, Jennifer felt like she could grow addicted to Duke looking at her like he just HAD to have her. She even liked the look of raw possession that darkened his gaze. For the first time in her life she felt sexy and powerful. She had always tried to avoid the direct gaze of any of her lovers, always feeling afraid of her shortcomings, that her breasts weren't big enough, that she was too thin and too pale. With Duke she felt safe and beautiful. She felt like she was seen. And she felt like he craved the sight of her. She raised her chin a notch and with the blanket corners grasped tight in her fists she opened her arms.

It could have been a romantic comedy gag. But it wasn't. "Whoa." Was all he could manage to say when Jennifer opened the blanket and stood there in a red velvet bra with a tiny black bow in the center, matching panties with black satin ribbon lacing the cloth together at either side of her hips and, of all things, a matching garter belt that suspended the aforementioned black stockings. His thumb slipped off the cork and it popped, champagne bubbling up out of the neck of the bottle – an appropriate metaphor with what was happening with his cock right now. The wind blew a little harder and the blanket fluttered up behind her a little, her hair was swept up into a dark and fiery halo around her face and she was just so damn luminous with the sun that he couldn't move, so he just stood there with champagne running down his arm and his jaw on the floor.

Jennifer smiled. She wished she had a camera. She wanted to remember Duke's face forever. In a moment of humanitarianism it occurred to her that every woman should get to see that look on Duke's face. The moment didn't last. She let the blanket drop behind her and feigned a yawn and stretch, working to give him a good look. Duke smiled in appreciation, but she didn't miss the predatory glint that was starting to spark in his eyes, the show of teeth in the smile. She shivered inwardly imagining what he could do with those teeth on her skin. She put as much swagger in her walk as she dared and reached a hand out for one of the glasses.

"Are you going to pour one of these for me?"

Duke had regained most of his control by now and kept his lips curled in his sardonic and knowing smile. He poured her glass and handed it to her. "Here you go, sweetheart." He poured his own and raised it. "Salut!" She echoed his expression and tipped her glass up. He was still eyeing her with hunger but he seemed to have reined it in. That wouldn't do. Jennifer wanted Duke… unleashed. She wanted him as out of control as he had made her feel. She took a sip. She wanted his walls down, his control shattered and she wanted all of his unrestrained passion trained on her.

"This is really good."

"Mmhm."

"Tastes expensive."

His eyes narrowed speculatively but he nodded. She turned away to give him a view of her backside. He stifled a groan at the sight of what could loosely be described as a thong, providing about an inch of red fabric stretched across each cheek. Seeing Jennifer's ass basically criss-crossed in red satin was more than he could stand right now.

"It would be a shame to waste any then." And she turned back around and poured it out over her breasts, gasping as the chill hit her skin. The droplets streamed down her body wetting a trail over and between her breasts, darkening the satin as it wended down her stomach heading for her hips and in between. When she felt droplets trickle onto her thigh she used her fingers to sweep some of them up and with her eyes locked on Duke she sucked the moisture off her fingers, dragging them across her lips. He still didn't move, in fact he looked frozen to the spot. "Oops. How clumsy of me."

Duke smiled as he caught onto her game. With all of her typical subtlety of a Mack truck, Jennifer was trying to seduce the beast out of its cage. She'd started it this morning and he'd held off, feeling like it was a little too early and concerned about hurting her. He'd hurt her at least a little their first time and it wasn't something he cared to repeat. For all her mental toughness and bravado, his girl had a delicate frame. He wanted to enjoy and protect her, not damage her. And now, here she was, deliberately taunting him. Apparently, she hadn't been fooled this morning and he'd only piqued her curiosity. Now here she stood, and looking at her in her lingerie he was tempted to comply, because he found himself wondering if anyone else had seen it. It certainly wasn't meant for normal wear. And Duke was only nominally surprised at himself for his feelings of possession over her.

She wasn't the first good girl to have thrown herself at him, but she still wasn't like anything or anyone he'd seen or had. She was loyal and honest and pure. She wasn't particularly naive, but she was untainted by her knowledge of the world. She had, heretofore, managed to keep herself ephemeral to the world around her. None of the women he had used or who had used him would have stuck by him through everything she had - there really hadn't been much of anything "good" about them except an image that they kept carefully polished. But that wasn't Jennifer. She wasn't seeking a cheap thrill. And she hadn't really thrown herself at him. But she was offering herself up to him, of all fucking people. He'd made a decision to keep her and he was finding within himself consequences to that decision, particularly discovering that he was insatiable for her and the increasing sense that he had an overly developed loathing for any of her previous lovers. He didn't have a fetish for virgins, but he found himself wanting Jennifer to be HIS.

So as she came to stand before him, dressed like a temptress and dripping in some of France's finest champagne, she was wanting something from him she'd never had before, and probably not aware that she was something he had never had before either; he realized that she already was his and they both needed to know it. He picked up the bottle of champagne, offering to pour her another glass and when she extended her hand with a half disappointed half calculating look on her face he instead took her wrist and carefully poured a bit of champagne on her wrist. Keeping his eyes on hers he raised that wrist to his mouth and licked the champagne off, when there was no more champagne on the delicate skin he suckled on the spot, scraping over it with his teeth. Jennifer gasped and her eyes slid closed. He set the bottle down and used his other hand to grasp her waist and pull her closer. He bent to give her the same treatment on her breast, scraping his teeth over the top of the sensitive globe. She gasped his name.

"You're right Jennifer. This champagne is exquisite." He moved to her other breast, pushing the fabric of her bra to the side and drawing her nipple into his mouth, setting the edge of his teeth on her just enough to leave a mark. She cried out and stiffened and he tightened his arms around her. Releasing her breast, he bent to her ear. "So you want more?"

Her eyes snapped open and he looked at her with intent and Jennifer knew he didn't mean the champagne. She knew that he had read her somehow, that the intensity she had been craving was understood by him.

"Yes."

"You really trust me?"

"Yes." _With my life and maybe even more._

He sat down on the hatch and pulled her in front of him, making her straddle his lap and licked the drying champagne from her belly. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled the hair band out again, indulging her senses in the feel of his thick hair, his warm mouth on her body and his hands alternately holding and caressing her.

"You know," he said when he was finished, "you didn't have to try this hard. I don't have much control when it comes to you as it is."

Did she actually look a little surprised? "You always seem to be holding on to something.."

"Yeah," he scoffed. "What little control I have left."

"I feel like I have none left when I'm with you."

"I like seeing you come apart in my arms, Jennifer. I like to believe that -" He halted for a second, weighing the risk, "what you feel with me is something new."

Her breath caught and her eyes stung. "It is, Duke. I've never - I've never known anyone like you before. I don't think anyone has ever believed in me like you do and I can't imagine anyone doing what you've done to protect me. If it wasn't for you I'd still be - I'd still be just this crazy, medicated unemployed woman facing institutionalization." Memories from the last several months started to descend on her and she was showing signs of panic. "I couldn't have lived like that, Duke. You don't know how you saved my life. You don't know what it was like -"

"Hey. Stop sweetheart. Stop. It's not going to happen again. Even if you start hearing voices again you and me and everyone will know that it's something important. And no one is going to lay a hand on you or… or anything because I'll be here." He pulled her down onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her. She rested her forehead against his. "I know what it's like to have no one believe in you. That's been pretty rare for me. And - well - I don't think anyone has believed in me as much as you."

She sniffed. "You have to know, Duke, I didn't flinch yesterday because I was afraid OF you. I was afraid FOR you. I know how you were scared of your trouble. But I never believed you would hurt me. And I'm so sorry I made you feel like you were anything -"

He cut her off with a kiss. "Enough. I can't have a conversation with you while you're dressed like this." She responded with a breathless laugh. "I've been wanting to know, is this thing new? Because I really don't want to think about some other guy seeing you in this."

"No." She said around a smile. "I mean, no one else has seen me in it. I, um, I bought it when I went back to Boston."

"Really? So you were planning on seducing me pretty early on?" He let his fingers drift back and forth on the T-strap of fabric across her ass.

"I just kind of like to be prepared."

"Oh, speaking of being prepared…"

"I don't think the need for a Plan B is going to be any greater or less based on whether or now we use a condom tonight. We'll just have to go to the pharmacy as soon as we get home tomorrow."

"Alright. Now. Let me see you, Beautiful."

"Wait, what?"

"Ah-ah, you were all showing off just a couple of minutes ago. Let me see you. I'm sure you want to get your money's worth out of that outfit."

She stood up and backed away from him and felt the rush again when his gaze on her turned hot and hungry. "Gods, I love the way your skin looks in the light."

And then he was on her. Four eager hands worked to leave clothing laying on the deck. Hands and mouths explored and tasted familiar skin. This time Duke let himself go, taking her hard and never letting up. When he flipped her onto her hand and knees, he only gave her a moment to make sure she was screaming with pleasure. And when he felt himself ready to come he put her on her back again and bit into her neck at the juncture of her shoulder. She gave her final cry of release with her hands clutching into his hair, holding him to the spot as she arched her neck for him. He collapsed onto her and she wrapped herself around him to hold him there, relishing his heat and weight over her and inside her. When he could move he shifted himself to withdraw from her and move to his side, at least as far as she would let him. He chuckled as he rolled with her, bringing her to rest on top of him and meeting her for a kiss.

"You - ah - you okay?"

"I am so much better than okay right now, Duke. You can get back with me on that in the morning."

He chuckled soft and ruffled her hair. "Right, I'll do that."

Jennifer awoke to the cresting of the sun over the horizon. She was still in Duke's arms but sometime during the night they had shifted to him spooning her. As she watched the sun she started hearing music again. She glanced nervously back at Duke but remembered what he said last night. That it was probably something important. She eased herself out of his arms and smiled at his sleepy protest. Once again she grabbed an extra blanket and went to face the sun. She winced when she stood up and smiled wryly at the soreness that her lovemaking with Duke had left her with. _The sun will make me feel better. Wait, since when do I believe in that kind of stuff? _She wondered. _But then, since when do I believe in people having dangerous, unwanted supernatural abilities they can't control? _Her world had simply not been a supernatural place. Even her "Trouble" had been treated as a mental health issue with medications before she had seen and hear Duke on TV. Before seeing him in person and touching him. Now her world was fraught with danger and she often felt like she had little time or space to breathe. How long had Duke been living like this? The others? No wonder he had cracked when he had been forced to kill his brother. She was even more grateful to Duke now for bringing her out here. Giving them both that breathing room and bringing them both closer together.

She closed her eyes to try and focus on the music but when she did it seemed to go away. So she opened her eyes and tried to relax. She pushed out the thought of trying to hear the music and gazed into the dawn again. She recalled that yesterday morning she thought she had heard it faintly but had been distracted. This morning everything was new and different. She felt sure of her standing with Duke and the forward motion of her life. Her doubts and fears were mostly neutralized. With her eyes open she made herself take in the appearance of the sunrise and not focus on the mysterious music.

There was an overall silvery look to the sky and water, and as the sun rose higher it looked like pale gold was being spilled over the world. By now, the sun appeared as a rosy gold globe coloring the difference between the ocean and the sky. And just that little bit of sun felt like it hit her full on with relief. She stared straight into it, assuming that it wasn't bright enough to damage her eyes and felt uplifted. All soreness seemed to ease out of here. And again in the growing sunlight she felt more awake and more powerful feeling than she had in months, if not ever. She wondered if this is how her phone felt when it was hanging on at 10% and she finally plugged it in. She was actually starting to feel a little too warm with the blanket wrapped around her so she let it drop, and vaguely hoped there wasn't a ship within binocular or telescope distance to see her standing stark naked on the deck of the _Rouge_.

Duke woke up more at ease than he had felt in a long time. The scent of the ocean air, the gentle rocking of the boat on the ocean waves and the lingering scent of Jennifer on his pillow. He opened his eyes to find her gone and not finding her on this side twisted to find her portside, stark naked and glowing with the light from the rising sun. _Wait, GLOWING?! _It took him a moment to realize it was more than just a trick of the light. With the sun on the other side of her, he should have seen her in shadow. Instead, she was lit up like a window with the sun shining through. He sat up and watched her. Well, of all the weird shit he'd seen in his life this was certainly the most pleasant. He sure as hell couldn't say he hated the view either. He had known that her ability to hear inside the barn made her special, and this just added a new dimension to that. She was in no apparent danger but he still felt his guard come up. He found his discarded pants and tugged them on before going to her. He didn't call to her or try to touch her right away and he stood there for a breathless moment or two waiting to see if she would notice him. Her eyelids were at half mast and a pleased smile curled her lips. He couldn't tell for sure but her eyes seemed to be glowing with golden light, no longer the color of molten chocolate.

Jennifer noticed again the shape of the sunray on the surface of the ocean. That it looked like an open door, and as she focused on trying to see through the door the music shifted. In fact the whole world seemed to shift. And instead of music she heard voices.

"For you to cross over would be all but a declaration of war." That was a male voice.

"I am summoning no soldiers, bringing no entourage," responded a woman. "And if you haven't been observing, war IS all but waging now. Two members of the royal family are under assault and human casualties are piling up. I will be discreet and incognito until or unless it becomes impossible for me to remain so. But the need is great and I _will_ be there for my family."

"Your highness - "

"Meet me on the island with the items I've requested. Two days by Earth." Jennifer could now see silhouettes, forms solidifying. "Jennifer!" The woman knew her? Was calling to her? "Jennifer, reach out your hand for me, help me cross!" Jennifer couldn't even think not to comply.

Duke saw Jennifer reach out to the empty air like she was trying to grab something and his alarms went off, when she leaned too far forward and almost over balanced over the deck wall he rushed to grab her, calling her name. A splash hit the water but Jennifer was safe, however dazed in his arms on the deck.

"Can I get a hand here? Maybe just a line? The salt water is NOT good for this fabric!"

Duke and Jennifer exchanged shocked glances and scrambled up. They peered over the side of the boat to discover a woman treading water near the ship, dressed in silk.


	4. Chapter 4

Stay

Chapter 4

(Author's Note: Teague is an old Gaelic/Irish word for "bard." They were the story tellers and record keepers of their day. Important, revered and wielded a fair amount of authority.)

Jennifer dressed in record time and after a four second, desperate search for her own bathrobe she grabbed Duke's and a pair of her warmest socks. Running back up on deck she found Duke hauling the woman onboard and trying to help her stand. It probably would have been easier if her dress hadn't been tangled around her legs. Luckily for the both of them Duke wasn't easily unbalanced, and that he was strong. After teetering for a moment the woman was standing upright but still needed Duke to help her balance. As she adjusted to her full height Jennifer could see that while she was slender built, she was nearly as tall as Duke.

_ Is the barn spitting out supermodels now?_ She was doubly glad she'd grabbed Duke's robe because she was pretty sure hers would have been too small. She hoped her socks weren't stretched out too badly.

"Oh, fuck THIS," said the woman and from somewhere she had a knife that she used to slice at the skirting of the dress. Duke backed away, leaving her to teeter as she slashed at the dress and freed her legs, gaining balance with each strip of cloth that fell to the deck at her sandaled feet. When she was finished, her hemline was reduced to a tattered fall of cloth that came just above her knees. She stood up straight again and both Duke and Jennifer were able to get a good view of her for the first time. Her hair was cropped short and, while wet, appeared auburn in color. Her eyes seemed to be a hazel green color and judging by her skin she liked to spend time in the sun. Jennifer could also see where the knife had come from as the woman seemed to incorporate them into her clothing. There was a knife strapped to each arm, one at each ankle and again at the thigh and the belt at her waist showed the potential to pack two or three more. Duke seemed to be observing the same thing because Jennifer noticed him easing his way between herself and their strange new passenger. She'd seen him do it enough now that she recognized his apparent relaxed posture was a feint. The woman didn't seem to buy it either. She replaced the knife into the holster on her right arm and raised her empty hands.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to be a walking cutlery shop. It's just that I sort of HAVE to be one. Never mind now. More on that later." Her accent was strange. Not exactly British but that was as close as Jennifer could place her. The woman shook the excess water from her hair and then focused her sight on Jennifer, an emotion Jennifer couldn't quite read passed over her face. Something like sadness or regret but also relief? Confused she thrust out Duke's robe.

"Here, I thought you might want this. "

"You're giving her my robe?!"

"Sorry, I couldn't find mine."

He inclined his head in understand. "That's okay bright-eyes, I don't think yours would fit her anyway." He held his hand up, near his cheek, palm down and level with the floor to indicate the woman's height.

"Yes, I'm tall. Even among… Yes. I'm tall. Genetics you know." She glanced over a Jennifer with a smile. "Thank you, my dear. You are most thoughtful."

"You want some socks?" Jennifer offered.

"Oh! Lovely, yes."

"Here's a thought," Duke offered, beginning to show his agitation. "Why don't you tell us who you are and where you're from and how you came to drop out of nowhere next to my boat."

"Well, I would have MADE the boat but that you panicked a bit. Which is fine. Understandable. I mean, I was only dropping through an inter-dimensional passage here. Jennifer had to lean a bit to make it all work."

"A bit?! She was practically going over the edge and YOU weren't anywhere around."

"I was RIGHT there! And I certainly would not have let ANYONE topple over the edge of a boat and into the ocean. That's just dangerous!"

"How were you going to keep her from going over while '_dropping_' through an inter-dimensional passage… and ohmigod I can't believe we're talking about this."

"I am not without my capabilities."

"Oh in that case - " He made a half threatening move toward her.

"Enough!" Jennifer shouted. "Duke, I'm fine. Thanks to you." She turned to the woman, "ALSO thanks to Duke; you are fine."

"If a little wet," she huffed.

"Well, we're sorry about that," Jennifer said crisply. "And we're sorry about your dress too." She ignored Duke mouthing 'we?' to her while shaking his head. He continued with mouthing 'not sorry' at her. "I don't know what we're going to do about other clothes for you until Monday though - "

"Wait. Monday?" Duke asked.

"Two days," the woman murmured. "So you heard all of that?"

"I don't know about 'all of that' I heard you talking to some man -"

Duke interrupted, "was it Agent Howard?"

"No. I didn't recognize the voice.

"You wouldn't. He's a teague."

"Wait. Vince and Dave?" Duke again.

"Would you two STOP?! Look, did you say there was a war?"

"My dear, when ISN'T there a war?"

"What _kind_ of war?" Duke asked.

"The same kind there always is - between good and evil, life and death, hyperbole and reasonability…"

"Who are the members of the royal family?" Jennifer demanded. She was tired of the interruptions. This woman had answers and information. And she seemed to not only accept that Jennifer could hear and see what others couldn't but to expect it and find it useful.

"Me. And Mine. And more answers later. Action now. First, it's cold and I need dry clothes. We also need to get all 'anchors away' and get back to your Haven. Lives to save, at least one death to stop. WHY do you people immediately think that death is going to STOP death? Seriously. From what I understand I'm actually going to need to take a skip over to upstate New York and help prevent some poor man's murder. Oh yes, kill a human to stop the physical embodiment of Death. I ask you, what kind of hare-brained notion is THAT?" All of this was said while the woman took off Duke's robe, used it to dry her hair and then began to take off all the rest of her clothing.

"Whoah! Hey! Lady Godiva! On THIS side of the inter-dimensional doors, we wear our clothes around strangers." Jennifer averted her gaze and was glad to see that Duke had turned his back.

"Oh. Well, you can call me May-er-Mary. At least for now. So we're not strangers and you can get over your weird hang ups. It's just skin and seeing isn't touching. Or having the permission to do so."

Jennifer sighed. These two were going to drive her nuts. "Come on," she gestured toward Mary. "I'll take you below and help you find some dry clothes. Sorry Duke, but they're probably going to have to be yours."

"Just - whatever is fine." He kept his back turned but ventured a glance behind him as Mary moved in the direction Jennifer showed her to the door leading below. Jennifer followed Mary below exchanging looks with Duke that were equal parts confusion, commiseration and reassurance.

Duke noticed that Mary had left her assortment of knives on the deck and went to investigate them. There was a pair of stilettos, a cinquedea, a misericorde, a rondel that she had used to cut her dress and a pair of ear daggers. They were all beautifully yet strangely made. Mostly of copper but with a dark line of what looked like steel or iron inlaid on the blade of each. Simple in design they were meant as real weapons. "Ah, Hell. I've got Xena the Warrior Princess on my fucking boat?"

Down below, Jennifer was keeping her distance from Mary and trying not to look at her unclothed form, while trying to help her work out something to wear out of Duke's wardrobe. Luckily it didn't take long. She may have shown up dressed in silk but she had no complaints about putting on Duke's more utilitarian clothing.

Mary cast an appraising glance about Duke's room, finally focusing on the bed. "So… you and Duke up there…?"

Jennifer ignored the question. "This other world you come from, what is it like?"

Mary looked at her for a moment and the emotion on her face was hard to read for sure but Jennifer thought she could observe regret and sadness in her gaze. And perhaps longing. She raised her eyebrows and tilted her head at Mary to indicate that she was waiting and the expression passed. Instead Mary seemed to be trying to formulate an answer.

"My realm is… complicated. It's not so very different from this. And yet it totally is. There didn't used to be such a divide you know. It was once easier for both to cross. Constant warfare, power struggles, intrigue. It can be a very dangerous place. But it's beautiful. And it's home. At least to me."

"Are you human?"

"No. And I think your real concern is whether or not YOU are human? And it needn't be your concern. Who cares?"

"Well, I care."

"So if you found out you _weren't_ human - what then? Would it change you? Have you done some things that are a little beyond human lately? Have those things changed you? Really? Whatever we call ourselves or whatever we are is really just the sum of a series of decisions."

Jennifer shook her head to dismiss the confusion swirling around. "You said we had lives to save?"

"Yes, if we leave right away, we'll get there in time."

"You can see into the future?"

"I try not to spend too much time looking there, I rather relish my sanity. But taking peeks here and there is quite useful." She rolled up the sleeves of Duke's dark green pullover and Jennifer noticed for the first time copper bands on each of her wrists. Then the copper torque around her neck as she adjusted the shirt collar under it. Duke's pants were too big in the waist so Jennifer loaned out one of her belts.

"Well, other than ridiculous, how do I look?"

"Dry," Jennifer responded and lead Mary back up on deck to tell Duke that they needed to lift anchor and go back home.

Setting course at full speed brought them closer to shore faster than the cruise out and the three gathered in the helm.

"What are we going to tell people about Mary?" Jennifer asked.

"I don't know, what do you want to tell them?" Duke answered.

"I'm not sure I'm ready to tell people I'm hearing things other than the barn. Or that opening doors in mid air is actually a thing I do."

"I REALLY don't need people to know that I can walk out mid-air doors either."

"Okay then, we'll just say that she's a rescue," Duke suggested

"What, that I was drifting out at sea? Won't people ask about the ship I was on?"

"Not if you have amnesia."

"Will people actually believe that?"

"Even if they don't, what could they really say?"

"Duke," Jennifer broke in, "what about Audrey and Nathan? Will we tell them the truth?"

He turned to look at her. "It should be safe to tell them, but that's up to you." She seemed to consider that a moment. "I promise, with Audrey back, Nathan will mellow. A little bit. She can keep him in line."

Jennifer had to admit that since Audrey had got back Nathan had steadily become more functional. He was still intense but that seemed to be his normal state of being. She wasn't going to judge him based on the events at the police station. Mary seemed to find the notion of Audrey keeping Nathan in line amusing but she suppressed her laughter and Jennifer chose not to comment on it. Instead she approached Duke and raising on her tiptoes kissed him on the cheek.

"I'm going to take Mary back below and get some kind of breakfast together, what do you want?"

"Just some toast would be good for now."

"Okay, you want some tea?"

"Yeah, thanks." He cupped her face in his palm and kissed her. "Be careful," he whispered in her ear.

"I will."

In the kitchen Mary accepted only some trail mix and water. Jennifer felt uncomfortable and it wasn't just because of Mary's strange means of arrival. She noticed Mary watching her as though Mary knew her and at the same time wanted to know her more. She wanted to drill her with questions about where she came from, and everything that Mary had already divulged either on accident or on purpose. But she was unnerved enough to avoid it and afraid of Mary's own prying. She didn't think she would be able to dissemble so easily with her.

"You can, uh, make yourself comfortable there if you want," Jennifer offered gesturing toward the booth that made up the breakfast nook. Mary took a seat facing her and watched her set the water to boil for tea, turn on the coffee pot and start the toast. They shared awkward glances and smiles for a moment before Mary spoke.

"How-WHERE did you grow up, Jennifer?"

"I grew up in Boston. And I grew up fine, I guess. I mean, my parents were great."

"Were?"

"I was adopted and my adoptive parents are both dead now."

"I'm sorry."

Jennifer shrugged, "Thanks, it's okay though. Dad died in a car accident when I was in high school and I lost Mom about five years ago."

"Lost?" Mary seemed confused.

"Um, that's a way of saying that she died."

"Oh. Sorry."

"Where are you from Mary?" She blurted it out just as the toast popped up and they both gave a little jump from the noise. Jennifer turned automatically to collect the pieces and butter them. The tea kettle whistled and she poured the hot water out into a mug and popped in of Duke's Earl Grey tea. It all took less than a minute but when she glanced back at Mary, she saw that her face had a schooled expression of calm.

"I'm from Ireland. Would you like some help taking that up to Duke?"

"Uh, no. I've got it. I'll be back - soon."

Resisting the urge to take the secret shortcut up to the bridge to be with Duke, Jennifer hurried back up to him. He noticed the troubled expression on her face right away.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I don't know. Mary's a little freaky."

"Beyond weird dress, weirdly armed and weird travel methods freaky?"

"Yeah. Or, the freaky that you don't realize would come with all of that until you DO. Does that make sense?"

"Sadly, it does. Must be because Haven is in sight now."

They stared out across the bow of the _Rouge_ and watched the shoreline get closer.

"I'm sorry, Duke."

"For what?"

"For… Mary. For ending our vacation so soon."

Duke shook his head. "You have nothing to be sorry for. And, freaky as she is, maybe she can give us answers."

"She's not going to give them up easily."

"No one ever does, Babe."

"I don't know that she should be left alone down there."

"I don't know that I want you alone with her if she makes you feel afraid."

"I'm not really afraid. I don't think she'd hurt me. Ever. I'm just uncomfortable with her. It's like she knows more about me than she should and then wants to know more. The way she looks at me is…"

"I noticed," Duke said with a sigh. He pulled Jennifer into his arms and turned her back to him, nestling her against him. Her hands floated over his on the wheel.

"I want to go ahead and tell Audrey and Nathan the truth about her. But just them. For now."

"Okay."

She leaned her head back against him, glad that he couldn't see the tears when they spilled over.

In the stateroom, Mary flicked her finger nail against the rim of her water glass and gazed at the image that arose.

"Dear girl, I wonder: Will you always run into his arms?"

Sorry for the short chapter! Chapter 5 is already well on its way and for some reason this just felt like the right place to cut Chapter 4 off.


	5. Chapter 5

Stay

Chapter 5

Duke wasn't particularly surprised to find Nathan, Audrey, Dwight and the Driscoll brothers waiting for him when he brought the Rouge in to dock. He was surprised to see that Haven looked to be recovering from a war zone.

"Are you okay with staying below with Mary? I'll call you when Dwight and the Driscolls are gone."

"Duke…"

"I need you safe, Jennifer." She frowned but consented and slipped out of the bridge to go below. She didn't want to be seen by the welcoming party but she didn't want Mary knowing about the secret passage either.

Audrey watched Duke disembark from the _Rouge_ and regretted that he didn't look as relaxed and restored as he should. She'd seen Jennifer sidle mostly unnoticed down below and was glad Jennifer wouldn't be here for this not very welcoming welcome party. She wondered only briefly why Jennifer didn't use the secret passage but dismissed it with the likelihood that she and Duke had been busy doing other things. It wasn't hard to see the connection that Duke and Jennifer shared, and Audrey was glad that Duke finally had someone worthy of him, but she worried for Jennifer. The younger woman had taken on a _lot_ in a short amount of time and Duke was complicated in easier circumstances. She was surprised to find that she was worried about Duke breaking Jennifer's heart as much as she was worried about Duke's heart.

Nathan saw Duke's defenses rise up and cursed under his breath. When the Driscolls had spotted the _Rouge_ returning they had called him and announced that they planned to meet him and confront him about Wade's death and the demise of the Crocker Trouble. The volcano eruption from Doreen Hanscombe's super charged Trouble had loosened the soil around Wade's grave and the body had been discovered. He, Dwight and the Teagues were working to keep it covered but the Driscoll brothers apparently had enough influence from their uncle to demand answers and apparently some kind of sanctioning on Duke. So he had asked Dwight for back up to keep things from getting out of hand.

"Duke!" Jack started toward him and met him coming off the plank. "You kill your brother to end your own Trouble? Damn it man, that Trouble of yours was important!"

Dwight sighed. _So much for things not getting out of hand._ He quietly moved toward Aiden to keep the brothers separated and isolated from each other. Nathan exchanged a glance with him and made his own movement to be ready to get between Duke and Jack. Dwight noticed Audrey's hand drift toward her gun and then flinch away from it as she overcame trained instinct to have weapon at the ready when violence seemed nearby.

Duke didn't even bother with his usual sarcasm and he used his full height and size to menace over the shorter man as he bristled with hostility.

"No, I killed my brother because he had Jennifer bent back over the kitchen cabinet with a knife at her neck. I killed my brother because he killed Jordan and at least three others that I know of. I killed my brother because despite my warnings he ran at me and put himself on my knife. The same knife he used to kill that girl he left at the marina."

"Duke, try to stay calm." Nathan urged, quietly. Duke turned a furious glare on him but Nathan didn't back down. "I get it. I do. But we have to stay _calm_."

Audrey took her own role with Jack who was already trying to rein himself in and Dwight laid his hand on Aiden's shoulder. Aiden's eyes were squeezed shut and he was breathing a little too fast for Dwight's comfort.

Jack closed his own eyes and thought about Jennifer. Who had never been anything but sweet to everyone since she got into this town. He'd heard of how the Crocker Trouble had made Simon something of a monster who couldn't even be around his own kid. His uncle had mentioned that it was like an addiction problem and Simon had always seemed to be fighting – and losing – an internal war. He breathed deep and slow. And he thought about how Aiden was trying to cope, having inadvertently killed people.

He opened his eyes to meet Duke. "I'm sorry, Duke. Is Jennifer okay?"

The effect was immediate. Duke relaxed and backed down. "She'll, ah, bounce," he responded with a sideway glance at Aiden. "He holding up okay?"

"As well as can be under the circumstances. God, I'm sorry man. That was a real dick thing of me to do."

"Yeah. Well, the Troubles tend to bring out the worst in everyone at some point man. What the hell happened here?"

"Doreen Hanscombe," Nathan supplied. "Her Trouble has been supercharged now and when she remembered her vacation in Hawaii…"

"Pele showed up," Duke finished. "Wait, a supercharged Trouble? What the fuck happened in the last couple of days?"

"It's Wiliam," Nathan growled.

"_WILLIAM?!_ What the hell?"

"It's a long story," Audrey offered. "Why don't we all get comfortable and get you caught up to speed. She stepped toward the gangplank and Duke motioned her off.

"How about we try the Gull? A little more booze and more space." Everyone was looking at him like he had a second head.

"I just want to let Jennifer rest."

Jack, who apparently bounced like a rubber ball, snickered. "You braggin' man?" Even Dwight cracked a smile and Audrey looked like she was torn between blushing and snickering herself. Nathan just rolled his eyes.

Duke cast Jack a withering glance. "Let's just get to the Gull. I'll meet you there. I'm going to tell Jennifer where I'll be."

Jack grinned and turned around, making the classic "whipped" sound as he and Aiden headed back toward their truck.

Audrey watched him suspiciously for a moment before she joined Nathan and Dwight in the Haven PD Suburban. She swept her eyes along the deck and noticed a pair of wet sandals that were left to dry on one of the hatches. Again, she chose to bide her time on such questions and said nothing.

Duke moved fast to get below. If Jennifer didn't want to stay here maybe she could go to the Herald. He found Mary apparently sleeping at the breakfast nook and Jennifer in her room on the floor looking at the junk from her birth parents' house.

"Hey, apparently things have got worse here and I'm heading over to the Gull to get debriefed."

"_You_ are going…?"

"I'd still feel better if you were safe, here, on the _Rouge._"

"Am I under protective custody now?" She was teasing, sort of.

He hunkered down beside her. "No. Protective custody would include handcuffs, and you, and my bed."

In the stateroom, the woman's eyes snapped open.

Jennifer's mouth dropped open a little and she grinned. "Wow, what do I have to do to get that?"

"Pulling another stunt like you did in the shower yesterday morning would be a great start."

"Aye, Captain," she murmured as they exchanged a kiss.

"You still okay being here with Crazy Mary?"

"I think I'm successfully avoiding her. Look, I _have_ to go to the pharmacy today."

"Oh. Yeah. Any chance you could make it a fast trip and come right back?" She quirked an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, sorry. Humor me though?"

She smiled and shook her head. "I'll make it quick. And I'll call you if I need you."

"Okay." Another kiss and he was leaving. His hackles rose as he crossed the stateroom and found Mary gone. Finding her leaning too casually near the door to the deck made his hair stand on end. Especially since she was regarding him so intently.

"It's smart to keep her on the water. She's safer that way."

Duke narrowed his eyes. "It's not like someone would be unable to board if they wanted to."

She narrowed her eyes in turn. "I think you know what I meant."

"Lady, you're really going to have start coming up with some answers."

"The right answers at the right time and the right place. And right NOW that is, for you, The Gull. Go. I promise no harm will come to her. Not through me and certainly not from me."

Duke turned and left, calling over his shoulder, "Your knives are in the chart room."

About thirty minutes later at the Gull, Duke had a splitting head ache and an urge to drink – a lot. Unfortunately, Nathan, Audrey and Dwight were on duty and sticking to tea and the Driscolls, at least Aiden, were both a bit pub shy.

"So that guy William was the one who attacked the Driscolls and Carrie Benson? And he can actually start a new trouble as well as making one worse? Damn, he seemed like a nice enough guy."

"Yeah, he had me really fooled. He was so kind and caring in the bar, barn, whatever."

Nathan grimaced but said nothing. He didn't want to revisit two days ago. Except that he knew he still owed Jennifer an apology for pointing his gun at her. He looked up to see Duke watching him.

"And then Cliff wished for a new Haven where there were no troubles except that _I_ was a _cop_?"

Jack and even Aiden started laughing. "That will _never_ get old," Jack chortled.

Even Nathan grinned. "You do make a great deputy."

"Now you're just being mean," Duke returned.

"Yeah, well, William put three bullets into your chest Duke, just because he knew that it would hurt me. And then he turned around and _killed_ Cliff to bring back a Troubled Haven."

Duke suddenly wanted the Driscoll brothers and Dwight gone. He glanced at Nathan and carefully indicated his desire for privacy by looking askance at each of them and shaking his head while he took a drink of his vodka tonic.

"Well, I think I have the need to know bases covered here. William – bad and making Troubles worse. No more trusting the friendly smiling blonde guy."

Audrey was getting increasingly uncomfortable and lowered her gaze. Nathan held Duke's stare and raised his eyes to the ceiling, toward Audrey's apartment.

"And now, if you will all excuse me," Duke rose from the table. "I have a bar to run." He turned to the Driscoll brothers. "Guys, I happen to know you have a really nice bottle of Glenfiddich. You wanna celebrate something, do it at home and for God's sake go back to your family. The last thing this town needs is for William to supercharge you." Jack flipped him the bird but ushered Aiden out of the Gull and hopefully to their respective homes.

Dwight had taken the hint and got up voluntarily. "I'm gonna get back to the station. I'll see you guys later."

The remaining trio didn't bother with too much subtlety as they made their way up to Audrey's apartment.

"Audrey, why is it so important to William that you be in a Haven full of Troubles?"

"I – I don't know. He seems to think that it's going to help me remember something."

"But what?"

"I don't KNOW, Duke. I just know that he's obsessed with this idea that he and I are supposed to be a couple or something."

"So when Jennifer opened the door to the barn, we saw you… How did he and those two other guys get out without being seen?" Mentioning her name, Duke suddenly wanted Jennifer right next to him.

"When Audrey came out, there was a blast," Nathan recalled. "Either William and his henchmen weren't affected by it or they caused it, or both." His hand covered Audrey's and made circular strokes across her knuckles, trying to comfort her and also trying to reach her. There was something she was holding back and he knew it scared her. "And if that's the case he's been here the entire time."

"Well, then where the hell is he staying? And why did he wait so long to make his move? Do we have any clue?"

Realization lit across Audrey's face and for the first time he noticed that Audrey's skin reflected light the same way that Jennifer's did.

"You're a genius, Duke!" She said.

"Again, I know. But why?"

"There was a clue in the Haven that Cliff had created. One of the victims had fiber glass under her nails."

"Fiberglass?" Nathan echoed.

"That would be for boat repair around here," Duke offered.

He eventually had to give up his favorite weed source and could only hope that Nathan and Audrey would forget about it in light of more important things. And as he stood staring down William he realized that this confrontation would be one of the most important things Audrey and Nathan would face together. He felt, rather than saw the point where Nathan was ready to squeeze the trigger and suddenly Mary's naked and weird rambling from the morning came to hit him.

"Nathan, stop! Stop! Trust me, just stop." He leveled his own aim at William's right, outer thigh and squeezed the trigger, aiming to injure. He had a sick feeling in his stomach about what Mary knew about preventing death. The round fired off to William glaring at him in cold fury and Nathan glaring at him in confusion. And before the echo of the shot faded Audrey was also crying out in pain and staggering into Nathan's arms. "Get her out of here!" Duke barked to Nathan. He kept the gun leveled on William.

"Where are you going to put the bullet next?" The man taunted. He was holding tight to his leg to staunch the flow of blood and sneering viciously at Duke.

"Well, I can think of at least one body part you and Audrey _don't_ share."

He backed out the door after Audrey and Nathan.

"What the hell was that?!" Nathan asked furiously.

Duke didn't really have a ready answer, "do we need to get her to the hospital?"

"I don't think so," Audrey answered. "And what would we tell them anyway? Duke, how did you know that we can't shoot to kill William?"

"Uh, that's a little complicated. Why don't you guys come on back to the _Rouge_? I have a pretty comprehensive medical kit there. And an explanation."

Nathan tore the sleeve off of his shirt and used it as a tourniquet for Audrey's leg. He picked her up and maneuvered into the backseat with her.

"Duke, what kind of explanation do you have on your boat?" Nathan asked. He cradled Audrey and tried to convince himself that she was only crying because there was a phantom bullet hole in her thigh.

"You're going to have to see it to believe it. You holding up okay back there, Blondie?"

Audrey sniffed and struggled to put on her brave face. "It hurts like hell but it's just a flesh wound. I guess I should say thank you?"

"You can thank me after the stitches are done." He fished his cell phone out of his pocket and called Jennifer. "Hey, Jennifer, um, can you get the medical kit out of the bridge and down to the kitchen? And clear off the table? Audrey's been hurt - yeah, she'll be okay but she's going to need a little work, everything I need is in that kit."

Jennifer didn't bother asking Duke about how he was going to be able to help a hurt Audrey with a medical kit he kept on the bridge. She had a funny feeling that Duke's life meant needing to know these kinds of things so she simply hung up the phone and turned to get started, only to find Mary watching her curiously. She could have sworn Mary hadn't been in the state room just a few seconds ago.

"Is anything the matter?"

"Yeah, a friend is hurt and Duke is bringing her in. We need to clear off the table and I need to get his medical kit from the bridge." Taking charge made Jennifer feel better, so did going to the bridge to get the kit and leaving Mary's presence. She noted the slightly hurt expression on Mary's face and tried not to feel bad. It made sense that if Mary could glimpse into the future and see a possible death then she might be able to glimpse thoughts too. And if she was going to invade someone's private thoughts she may as well get used to seeing or hearing unflattering things. When she got back down Mary had the table cleared off and had put one of the throw pillows on the table for Audrey's comfort. Her face was drawn with apparent worry and Jennifer wondered what she had seen.

"Do you… do you know what happened?"

"I see some of it. Duke saved her life. Ultimately by causing an injury. She will mend well enough."

"It's just that you - you look so worried."

"Duke didn't shoot your friend. He shot your enemy."

"Was Audrey in the way?"

"No. Therein lay the problem. There is a literal and physical connection between her and the enemy."

"Who is this enemy?"

"I do not know the name. He is tall, blonde and handsome with blue eyes."

Jennifer's shock registered on her face. "I know him! That's William. He helped Audrey! And - and he was nice the other night. I think."

"William." Mary seemed to be testing the name in her mouth. "How fitting." She seemed to understand something about the name that Jennifer didn't. "He is deceptive. And very carefully so." Jennifer thought he wasn't the only one.

"What does he want with Haven?"

"Nothing good."

"Are you here to help or not?"

"Why would you ask such a thing?"

"You never really give any answers and you're obviously hiding something. Or, a lot of things. I don't know yet."

Mary leveled her gaze at Jennifer. "If I am not what you deem to be adequately forthcoming I can only ask that you trust me in spite of your otherwise excellent instincts. I will, in good time provide not only help but also answers."

"If you're not human, what are you?"

"Jennifer!" It was Duke coming down. She whirled around to see Nathan behind him, carrying Audrey. Mary seemed to melt into the shadows.

"Duke! Ohmigod. Are you sure she'll be alright?" Audrey's pant leg seemed soaked with blood.

"She's lost quite a lot of blood but yeah… I hope so."

"Shouldn't she go to the hospital?"

"The hospital would have too many questions that we don't want to answer," Nathan responded. He laid Audrey gently on the table and wiped her brow. His face was etched with concern.

"Nathan," Duke spoke softly, handing him a pair of scissors, "you're going to need to cut her pants off." Nathan nodded and began to cut the pant leg off. Duke turned, and opening the kit started taking out sterile packs of surgical equipment and syringes.

Jennifer went to stand next to him. "Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked in a low tone.

"Can you read a pulse?" Duke's movements were quick and efficient but there was a visible tremor to his hands.

"Sort of."

"Okay, have a seat next to her and monitor her pulse for me."

"Are you okay to do this?"

"I've seen worse."

"That isn't what I meant." She reached out her hand and covered his. He turned to look into her eyes and she reached up cup his cheek in her other hand. He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. They were picking up the light again and glowing soft. He felt the jangling of his nerves ease.

"I know." He gave her a reassuring smile. "But I can do this."

"Okay." Jennifer took her place on the bench seat near Audrey's head. She looked up to meet Nathan's intense blue gaze. "It'll be okay, Nathan."

Nathan wanted to believe her, but Audrey was so pale. And while he could recognize that Duke would have to have acquired first aid knowledge for a life at sea, he didn't know that a gunshot wound could really fall into that category. Jennifer saw that Nathan was holding Audrey's hand.

"Can you feel her pulse there?" He nodded. "How is it?"

"Um, steady. But not very strong."

"Okay. Duke is going to get her patched up. It's not a very bad wound, is it?"

"It, ah, it doesn't seem to have struck any arteries, even though she's bled a lot. Flesh wound. She needs stitches. And - antibiotics to avoid infection. I don't know what we could do about the blood loss."

"As long as the blood loss isn't too bad, she'll recover with some rest."

Duke let a flicker of a smile cross his face as he listened to Jennifer talk to Nathan. She was good with people. He reached into the back of the refrigerator to a tucked away box and retrieved two small glass vials out of it. He loaded the two syringes and carried them over to the table along with a wound cleaning kit and suture kit. At Audrey's side he raised one syringe and prepped it by flicking the tip of the needle, and turning Audrey's arm tapped the vein at her elbow to raise it. The action roused her enough for her to focus on the syringe and he saw her questioning glance.

"It's morphine, Audrey. Just enough for you to take a little nap and not feel the stitching."

"Duke," Nathan murmured, ready for a warning. He didn't even want to know how Duke got his hands on medical grade morphine. He inadvertently tightened his grip on Audrey's wrist where Jennifer had let him take over on the pulse monitoring. Audrey twisted that hand around and clasped his.

"It's okay, Nathan." She whispered.

"Trust me," Duke asserted, "I got the dose right. I've been through way too much to save your ass to make a mistake and kill you now." Audrey and Nathan both nodded their consent.

Duke made the injection and waited the few seconds it took her to fall into sleep. He looked back and forth between Jennifer and Nathan for a moment and she tilted her head in Nathan's direction, indicating her surrender of pulse monitoring to him.

"Alright Nathan, you keep your focus on her pulse. If it wavers, I need to know. Got it? Don't pay attention to what I'm doing. Watch the clock." Nathan nodded and turned his attention to the clock on the wall. "Jennifer? Can you watch her breathing for me?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay guys, here we go." Duke tore a pack of cleansing wipes open and wiped off the blood around the wound and sprayed iodine into it. He tried to simply see torn flesh and disassociate it from Audrey. With a steadying breath he opened the suture kit and began to sew together the torn skin.

William limped and cussed his way uphill at the Haven lookout. He'd wanted her almost mortally wounded. Hospitalized. As it was, he'd heard the Crocker male say that she could be patched up on his fucking boat. _Patched up. Like some damn rag doll._ He'd love to shake some sense into her. He'd been trying to for SO long and she just wouldn't listen. Worst of all she refused to remember. Refused. Chasing this stupid mortal life in an attempt to leave him. As though she could. When he had given up EVERYTHING for her. _How _had that man known not to go for a kill shot? A rustling in the trees interrupted his thoughts. What looked like a large bird had landed on a branch, he couldn't quite make out the bird but he could see the light of the fading sun reflecting on its eyes and they were green. So it wasn't a bird.

"Who's there?" He demanded. There was no answer but the shadow melted back into the tree, no eye shine now, only a non-descript shadow. But he could feel a gaze on him. "What do you want!?" He yelled at it.

"Just to make sure you're healing along okay." The voice was low and scratchy, deliberately distorted by the speaker.

"Don't you mean you're making sure SHE is?" There was no answer.

He tore open the hole in his jeans and retrieved the box from its hidey hole in the tree stump. "It won't be here again," he told the being in the tree. Still no answer. He removed one of the flower spores and rubbed it on the wound.

"Now THAT'S going to leave an ugly scar."

"Good."

"I meant on you. Not her."

"I scar, she scars. You can witness that by the one on her foot that her bitch sister gave me." Again, there was no answer but he thought the being registered some kind of surprise. "You're not one of her stupid birds are you? She doesn't get that anymore. She can't have it both ways!"

"She can have what she chooses."

"She already made her choice! She can't take that back!" He screamed.

"Nothing lasts forever."

"Macha, is that you? You fucking bitch. You think I can't kill you?!"

Maeve relaxed into the tree trunk now. _That dumbass thinks Macha is here?_ If she was, he'd be pinioned to the ground with his tibias through his shoulders while she bludgeoned him with at least one of his femurs. Never mind what it would require in terms of treatment to Audrey. Actually, just doing that would be a show of restraint. At least he wasn't suspecting her own presence or involvement yet.

"It would be hysterical to watch you try." It would be, too. Macha fought fast, dirty and mean. She had little to no use for honor and valor in battle. She wasn't a warrior. She was walking death and destruction. Maeve suspected he knew as much and was perhaps trying to test her. She needed to get out of here before he started suspecting someone with a little more patience. But first she needed to destroy his little hidey hole portal in the old tree stump. It would give him a notion that perhaps he was dealing with Macha. And that would suit her for now. Moving faster than he could track in his diminished form she positioned herself behind him and sent a fire-bomb of an arrow onto the stump, putting a blank crater in its place. He was stuck here for now. He'd wanted out so damn bad he could experience the hard life he had chosen here. At least until he was buried forever. Before the smoke cleared she had taken wing and cleared the area, out of his sight. She could hear him in the background though. Cursing her entire family, and Macha in particular. _Did he just tell me I missed?_ Macha would have a field day when she found out. Hopefully only a small field though.

Duke used tiny stitches to minimize the scarring and when he was done, carefully coated the seam with antibiotic gel before taping on a bandage.

"And we're done folks."

"How long until she wakes up?" Nathan asked.

"An hour, maybe less. We'll want to keep an eye on her until then. And, like Jennifer said, because of the blood loss she's going to need a lot of rest. You might want to call Dwight here after awhile. Give him some kind of excuse. If not the truth."

Nathan nodded and rose to pick up Audrey. "Would you go ahead and call Dwight over? I think he needs to know about what happened. I want to take Audrey somewhere comfortable."

"Oh, you can take her to my room," Jennifer offered. She showed Nathan the way and helped him settle Audrey in the bed, covering her in a light blanket.

"Jennifer," Nathan hesitated. "I'm sorry about yesterday. I don't know what to say, under normal circumstances I would never pull a gun on you. And I'm sorry for what I put you through when we first met."

"Oh, God, Nathan," Jennifer responded, "I'm sorry too. I sat there and goaded you to kill someone. I mocked you when you might have been feeling hurt. I - I just - I don't think I would do that sort of thing either. Let's just let it be in the past." She held out her hand and he took it, _and felt the soft warmth of her palm._ He stared, stunned into her cheerful and expectant face and worked to recover himself.

"Uh, deal," he responded.

"Great. Come on, we'll check back in on her in ten minutes." Nathan followed her back out to the state room where Duke was clearing up from treating Audrey's wound. Feeling temporarily awkward about sitting at the table now, Duke led them back onto the deck where they encountered Dwight pulling up to the pier. An eagle wheeled in the sky and took its landing in a tree near the pier. They weren't all that unusual in Maine, but still notable. Duke and Jennifer took the bench while Dwight and Nathan settled on the nearest hatch. Duke opened the cooler next to the bench and pulled out four beers, opening Jennifer's for her and tossing one to Dwight and then Nathan. They gave Dwight the quick run down on what happened at the dry shack and Duke again had to hope that, other, more important than weed type things distracted Dwight.

"So, Duke," Nathan began, "Now tell us about this explanation you have on your boat for how you knew we couldn't kill William."

"Yeah, that." Duke looked around a moment before addressing Jennifer. "Where is Mary, by the way?"

"She was with me when you guys came in. She just sort of moved into the shadows… Oh, that's creepy."

"What?" Nathan looked puzzled and annoyed as he turned to Jennifer.

"Uh. Well… I, uh, apparently opened another Door of some kind."

Nathan could only blink at her, so Jennifer told him about Mary with a little input from Duke.

"So you open inter-dimensional doors?" Dwight asked.

"I guess."

"And this woman, Mary –"

"I don't think that's her real name," Jennifer announced.

Duke looked at her with some surprise. He'd made the same conclusion and he wasn't surprised that Jennifer had picked up on that, only that she hadn't shared that with him before.

"It was in the way she said her name. She said May first, then, switched it to Mary. And I don't think May is her name either, just that her name begins with that sound. Not that it matters because even if she was honest and told us her name was Annabelle we still wouldn't know who she was. She even changes the way she talks." They looked at her in confusion. "Just listen to her for awhile. She changes from really informal and almost modern slang to almost archaic. And she says she's from Ireland but she doesn't sound Irish. Her accent isn't anything I recognize at all."

"Me either," Duke concurred.

"Do you think she was in the barn?" Nathan asked.

"I don't remember hearing her voice, and I don't think so. I'm not sure how or even _if _she is connected to the barn. But I know she knows something about William. Also I'm not sure how she does it, but she can see not only into the future - she predicted that we had to come home in order to be on time to stop a death - looks like we managed that - but she told me that Audrey was injured by Duke shooting William. And I don't think William is his real name either."

"Woah, wait. What makes you think that?" Duke asked.

"She didn't know his name, she described him and I knew who she meant and when I said his name she seemed to have to sort of… consider it for awhile before she said the name was 'fitting.'"

"Why is the name fitting?" Nathan asked.

"I have no idea."

"So how do you open these doors?"

"I really don't know. While Duke and I were gone, we slept out on deck. You know, under the stars." Jennifer suddenly blushed scarlet and Nathan and Dwight both did a poor job of suppressing a smile. Nathan looked across at Duke who, finally, looked relaxed and pleased with himself as he smiled indulgently at Jennifer. "Anyway, on both mornings, I would wake up as the sun was rising and it was too pretty to miss so I would get up and just go and stand and watch it rise. And both times I heard music. But not quite so clearly the first time, you know? I think that was because Duke joined me, like, right away. And I even heard it that evening too, Duke, you know… when, um… " She was blushing again and this time Nathan had to look away because even Duke looked a little guarded. Dwight raised his eyebrows and covered a smile. "Yeah, so, I noticed then that the light from the sun made a reflection on the water that kind of looked like a door. So, the next morning when I thought I heard music, I was sort of ready for it. And I ended up standing there just letting myself focus on the sun and soon, it wasn't music it was voices and one of them was Mary - or whoever she is - and she was arguing with someone she called a 'teague,' but not like it's their name, and then the next thing I knew she was calling to me. She was telling me to take her hand and help her cross. So I did. And then the next thing I knew Duke was grabbing me to keep me from going over and there was Mary, treading water at the side of the boat. Duke hauled her in while I ran down here to get dressed and get a robe for her. And, that's about it."

"If you can open a door and let people out, maybe you can open a door and put people back IN." Nathan theorized "We've got to figure out how you can do that so - "

"Nathan," Duke's voice was soft but still full of warning.

"Yeah. Sorry."

"It's okay," Jennifer offered. "I know how much you want to end the Troubles and, and help Audrey."

"I, ah, I could feel your hand."

Jennifer looked at him in surprise. Dwight registered open shock.

"Wh-What?!" Duke leaned forward.

"Jennifer and I had some apologies to make to each other." Nathan was looking down. "We made it a deal to forgive and forget. We shook on it. And I could feel it."

Duke turned to look at her. "So you have an immunity to the Troubles too."

"No, I don't. That black putty stuff made as much of a mess out of me as it did Nathan or Dwight."

"But that's different. That wasn't a real Trouble," Duke pointed out. He felt Jennifer slip her hand into his and gave it a reassuring press with his fingers.

"Duke's right," Dwight offered. "Whatever those things are, they're probably the way that Troubles are being created and worsened."

"Right," Nathan affirmed, "so does that mean then, that this is something Audrey's not immune to?"

An uneasy silence descended over the deck of the _Rouge_. After a moment Jennifer stood.

"I'm just going to go check on Audrey." Nathan moved to join her but she flinched away and murmured about how she could handle it.

Duke closed his eyes and shook his head. Dwight turned to Nathan. "You're freaking her out."

"I know. I don't mean to."

Duke sighed. "She'll be okay. She's tougher than she looks. But this thing she can do, it's a scary idea. Kind of… a big responsibility."

"And as a wise werewolf once said, 'Fate does not blow her bullets for nothing.'"

Mary seemed to peel herself out of the shadows near the chart room as she approached the men.

"Dwight, Nathan, meet Her-Name-Probably-Isn't-Mary."

Dwight took in possibly the tallest woman he'd ever seen, and quite likely the hottest too. She looked ready for a fight with various knives strapped to her limbs and torso and a re-curve bow on her shoulder with a quiver of arrows.

"Where have you been?" Duke asked.

"Checking up on William. I wanted to make sure he wasn't going to bleed out. He's not. Did some rather quick and crude healing."

"Yeah, I didn't hit anything major."

"What do you know about William?" Nathan demanded.

"More than you can't kill him without killing your Audrey. Not quite enough to destroy him. At least not yet." She walked to the cooler and withdrew her own beer and drank the bottle in one swallow. She suppressed a smile at their reaction. And wondered if they would get the clue.

"Okay, no free rounds at the Gull for you," Duke murmured. "Where did you get the bow and arrow?"

"Your village has an archery supply store. Creatively entitled: Haven Archery Supply."

"Where did you get the money to pay for it?"

"I didn't say I bought it."

The three men shared a collective sigh. She rolled her eyes. "Don't fret. The owner will be rewarded. And from me, that is better than your currency."

"Good for them," Duke sneered. "Remember those answers we were talking about earlier? This would be a good time."

"Very well. I do not promise satisfactory answers at this time, or any time in the near future. The spoken word is difficult to retract and often heard by those who shouldn't hear it. And my presence here creates a different kind of peril." At their puzzled faces she supplied. "I'm kind of a big deal."

Duke sighed heavily. "Who are you really?"

"At this time, I can't tell you that."

"Of course not. How about this, can we count on you to help us?"

"Absolutely."

"So how are we supposed to trust you?" Nathan asked, exasperated.

"Well, let's put it this way. I'm roughly ten thousand years old by your measure of time and you're fucking my older sister."

After everything Dwight had learned about Audrey and the history of the troubles he couldn't find that too surprising, but he did find it a little amusing. Duke couldn't help it. The look on Nathan's face was too much. He choked on his beer with laughter.

Mary wheeled on him and glared. "Oh, laugh it up Curse Killer. It's my daughter you're taking to bed and we WILL be having some words about that."

(Update for Author's Note: The Wise Werewolf that Maeve/Mary mentions can be found in Kresley Cole's book Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night. He's very yummy.)


	6. Chapter 6

Stay

Chapter 6

Jennifer eased into her bedroom to check on Audrey with her head still spinning over Nathan's revelation. She'd always thought there was something romantic about the fact that Nathan could only feel Audrey. And it was. But what did it mean that he could feel her touch too? More questions than answers were piling up about who she was. She knew that Audrey's memories were implanted, were hers? It was a frightening thought; that her memories of childhood with the Masons were fake. That Christmas with grandparents and cousins had never happened. Sledding in the Adirondacks, sailing in the Atlantic, learning to ride her bike… She didn't want those to be false memories. She'd _felt _the scrape of rock on her knuckles when she had crashed her sleigh. She'd _felt _the burn of too much time in the sun. And she had held her mom's hand after chemo therapy and called hospice after she had died. She shook her head to clear it, trying to chase those thoughts really could make her crazy. She forced herself to focus on Audrey's sleeping form.

"Okay, average pulse rate is sixty to a hundred beats per minute, so… let's see what you're doing here." She took Audrey's wrist in her hand, and immediately jumped back and away.

* * *

Duke was, for once, rendered speechless. Dwight couldn't help but think that it was a nice change. Nathan was apparently still trying to grapple with either the rough knowledge of Audrey's age or wrapping his mind around the notion that there was someone who knew who she was, other than William. Dwight decided to tackle the questions in order of those most likely to be answered.

"So, how old is Jennifer then?"

"She was born in the year of your current era, 1981."

"So you were here then?"

She hesitated a moment. "Only briefly and, as now, I wasn't known then."

Nathan had recovered by now and asked, "Then, who is Audrey, really?"

"I think that's best reserved for her to ask that question and make her own discovery. But as I told Jennifer when she was worried about being human - what we are at any given point in time is subject to our choices."

"Yeah. Speaking of choices," Duke started, but Maeve cast him a silencing glare.

"You know what you did and how you did it. You knew her vulnerabilities. And you _could _have let her go. So don't tell me how she made this free and clear choice. I wouldn't care if she took to bed half the town. Just, preferably not THIS town. I didn't give up raising her as my own to see her placed _back _into danger. And you can't protect her anymore, can you? You very likely have one of the most precious beings in existence in your care and the means with which you had to protect her are _gone._"

"Hey!" Nathan stood to defend his friend. "Duke ended his Trouble by killing his brother while _saving_ her."

She watched Duke carefully for his response. He looked torn and jagged around the edges. Anger splintered in and from him. Good. "It shouldn't have been you that killed him, Duke. It should have been one of these two. He never should have been able to get that close to her. You have GOT to start trusting each other." She sighed and closed her eyes. "Actually, there's a good chance you couldn't have resisted her. Hell, I don't know. I didn't get the chance to know anything more about her, to predict or guess what she would be; before I had to send her away. And I thought that her human ties would be enough to keep her hidden. Give her a normal, safe boring life."

"Okay, what the hell are you talking about?" Duke was finished playing defense with this woman. He wasn't the villain in Jennifer's life.

"As a halfling in my home, Jennifer would have faced constant assassination attempts. And I'm not known for my maternal skills. Here, she's lovable in an irresistible kind of way."

"What are you known for?" Dwight asked. He wasn't going to touch Jennifer's likability with Duke already bristling for a fight.

"War. And sex. And drinking."

"Who ARE you?" Nathan demanded again, exasperated.

"I literally can't say that, here." She gestured around with her hands. "We would need to be in open water to lower the risk of being heard. And even then…." They looked less than believing. "Seriously. My name gets attention. And if it's found out that I'm here the violence will escalate."

"Then why are you here?"

"Same reason as last time - I want to save my sister. Added to that I want to save my daughter. And because the violence is already escalating. I knew, Nathan, I knew that you would be the lynch pin that finally made this whole wheel turn a different direction."

"So Nathan can really end the Troubles?" Duke asked quietly.

"Well certainly not if he's DEAD. And the Troubles are genetic."

"But they go _away_." Dwight protested. "It's been a cycle for as long as anyone can remember."

"Yes, I know. It's the soil content, ocean proximity, the cold, it has a neutralizing effect on the blood properties."

"Blood properties?"

"That's a long story for another time. Bottom line - blood calls to blood. As long as I, and my kind, walk here what you see as The Troubles would surge. And from what I have overheard, this William is exacerbating existing Troubles and even creating new ones. Am I correct?"

"So if Audrey is your older sister and she comes back with the Troubles…" Dwight was beginning to wonder if Jordan had been right after all.

"No!" Nathan grated. "Audrey always shows up _after _the Troubles have already started. She isn't the cause of them."

"No, not really," Maeve agreed. "There are more cycles in the world than Audrey's arrival and departure here. Carbon cycles in the ocean, for starters… Magick is a complicated science. Knowing what would happen, Aud- my sister made a choice that was ultimately just a link in a chain of choices that would keep her bound for generations to come. And then, about fifty years ago, something happened. My sister didn't just _enjoy_ a man, she got rather loopy over him. And when I got a chance to get a good look, I saw…" She turned to Nathan, "_You._"

"Okay, so I don't get it," Duke pressed. "How does Nathan end the Troubles if they're genetic and bound to be part of a cycle no matter what?"

"Look, you're not going to be able to distract me for long and I didn't say Nathan could end the Troubles. I'm pretty sure I negated that in fact. I said he could turn the wheel in a different direction. There are some really good working theories about how to better manage the Troubles, a few to possibly end them but I maintain that it is up to my sister to implement that. But until we defeat this William, all of that is moot. It's a lot easier to care for the wounded on a battle field if you're not having to fight your enemy off of them."

* * *

Below deck, Audrey was wide awake and staring at her hand. There was a lingering glow from where Jennifer had touched her. Looking at Jennifer she noticed the same glow on her hand.

"Wh-what was that?" Jennifer asked.

"I don't know," Audrey responded.

"Have you ever seen anything like that happen?"

"Close, but not quite." She started to sit up, she didn't feel as woozy as she thought she should but it wasn't as easy as usual either.

"I'm not sure you should actually be doing that," Jennifer stepped gingerly forward.

"Well, I don't suppose you mind giving me a hand?" Audrey smiled at her, hoping that some light teasing would set her more at ease. It worked, Jennifer smiled and extended her hand, if slowly. Audrey did the same and it was like reaching toward a candle without ever feeling the burn from the flame. Before there was even contact the glow started again and Audrey felt the rest of the cobwebs in her head go away. She rose with ease.

"You know," she told Jennifer, "whatever is going on here, it seems to be, um, _healing _me."

Jennifer considered this for a moment. "Maybe we should check your wound?"

Audrey nodded and pressed against the bandage. She winced in pain and shook her head. "So, not that much healing then."

Jennifer bit her lips. "You want to try?"

Audrey considered for a moment. She didn't really want to waste time trying to heal in the more conventional sense. There was too much going on and she didn't want to answer the questions that would come. And whatever was happening whenever she and Jennifer touched was a lot safer feeling than whatever happened when she and William touched. Instead of a dark red spark and cracking sound this was a gentle, soundless glow. She nodded and pushed down the blanket.

"Right," breathed Jennifer. She clapped her hands together and rubbed them as though getting ready. She and Audrey exchanged glances and smiled. "Yeah, I guess that isn't necessary." Without further preamble, Jennifer reached out and touched Audrey's thigh, just above the bandage.

The glow happened as before, but the heat was greater. More intense and collecting around the wound. Just when it was getting hot enough to make Audrey worry if this was a good idea or not she felt a familiar itchy feeling on the wound.

"Jennifer, wait, wait a second." Jennifer pulled back and Audrey started peeling off the bandage.

"Oh my God," they said at the same time.

"What are some of these theories?" Dwight asked, and then ducked when Maeve fired an arrow he hadn't even seen her nock on the bow between him and Nathan. He whirled around to track where it landed to see it burst into flame as it struck something on the deck of Duke's boat. A small explosion had all three of them leaping to their feet and Duke shouting about not putting holes in his ship. Nathan took the lead in trying to grab her but again she moved faster than they could see, crossing to where her arrow had landed and picking up what looked like the tail of a horseshoe crab.

"Spies," she announced. "Or, rather _a _spy." She flung the tail over board muttering, "let that serve as a warning." The three men behind her were suddenly quiet and still again so she turned toward them. Well, that had certainly got their attention. Walk out of an inter-dimensional door and you're not impressing anyone in this town. But make an impromptu bomb out of a common arrow and move with inhuman speed and they finally got the hint: _she wasn't human. _She supposed she could chalk that up to the prevalence of vampire culture these days. Of course, now Nathan and Duke would be worried about the implication of this in terms of their relationships with Audrey and Jennifer. Dwight was notably angry, and with good reason. As a bullet magnet, any fast moving projectile felt like a potential threat to him. And he wouldn't necessarily draw the conclusion that she would never miss her target. She moved as a blur to stand beside him, laid her hand on his arm and refused to acknowledge the tingle she felt at the contact.

"I never miss, Dwight," She told him. "EVER. And no comrade of mine is ever struck by one of my arrows." She gazed into his eyes and let the mask drop just a tiny amount. Just enough for them all to see the true green of her eyes. She heard his heart rate pick up and backed off. "And I don't use guns." She finished off rapidly. She heard the door close, signaling that someone was coming up from the living area. A glance among the men showed that they hadn't heard it so it had been done softly. She sniffed the air and recognized her daughter and sister, and the scent of a gun.

She looked at Duke. "We are NOT finished," she hissed.

"Put the gun away. Dwight is here." She spoke in Audrey and Jennifer's direction and watched Duke and Nathan whirl toward them. Dwight never looked away. "No," she whispered. "Not human at all."

He nodded in understanding and began to turn toward the two women now coming around the corner. She stayed him with her hand at his cheek, gently but inexorably forcing him to look back at her. "And I do not CHOOSE to be." She insisted. She hoped he understood the difference, or that she could make him understand in time. She hoped they could all understand.

"Parker," Nathan choked, "you should be resting."

"Uh, yeah, about that. If you'll take a look here, you'll notice I'm fine now." She was wearing one of Jennifer's skirts and patted her thigh a little below the hemline. "Like it never happened. But first, what was that noise? And second, who the hell is that?"

"Funny you should ask," Duke responded. "Since she's the one who made the noise by shooting some kind of arrow bomb onto my deck and you can take your pick on what to call her…"

"Duke," Nathan warned. As always he was quiet, but heard. And Duke stopped mid sentence. He stared at Jennifer, suddenly not knowing what to do. He'd always figured that whoever Audrey was, she may not have been entirely human. But if Mary was telling the truth and Jennifer was her daughter, it meant that Jennifer wasn't human either. That, combined with the events of this morning was nerve rattling. But over Audrey's shoulder he could see Jennifer's sudden hesitation. He saw her face transform from something like excitement to worry and confusion and so he took a steadying breath and held his hand out to her. It didn't matter who her mother was, what her DNA would say, she was still the same woman she had been yesterday.

The look on Duke's face worried her. It was too much like the time they first saw each other. When he had stared at her in disbelief, when she had not been what he expected. When she had not been what he wanted. But his hand was held out to her, and so she went to him, bypassing the outstretched hand and into his arms. She felt one hand come to rest on her neck and a kiss on the top of her head. Something wasn't right. His attitude was part protective and part hesitant with her.

Nathan took Audrey in his arms, grateful that she was somehow healed. Without being told he knew it had something to do with Jennifer. That there was some meaning in the fact that he could feel both of them. He wondered if he would be able to feel Mary if she touched him. And, then, by extension, William. But for now, Audrey was healed. And that was all that mattered. He glanced at Duke, holding Jennifer and looking worried. He understood, but this was another hurdle Duke would have to go over himself.

"Audrey," Nathan took her hand and guided her forward. "This is Mary. And I think she can answer our questions."

At those words, Jennifer felt Duke's arm around her spasm slightly as he clutched her tighter. He pulled her into the bridge and away from the others.

Audrey stared at the woman named Mary and felt a brief rush of recognition, and then, nothing. She felt like she should know her but didn't. It was similar to when she saw William. Mary was smiling at her, though it was wistful and she didn't seem to expect her to remember.

"Can you tell me who I am?"

After a deep breath, she replied, "I can tell you about your birth and the name you were given. I can tell you what you were like as an older sister. I can even tell you why your gunshot wound is gone. And, yes, I can even help you to identify and defeat William. But only you can say who you are. You're the only one who can make that decision."

* * *

"Duke, what's going on?"

"Do I make you feel safe, Jennifer?" He was quiet and pensive and coming from anyone else besides Duke that would have been a very creepy question. As it was, she felt even more ill at ease than before.

"Well, yes. But what do you mean? Why are you asking me that?"

"You're not a rebound Jennifer. And I don't want to be a glorified bodyguard."

"Um, I don't remember Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner getting it on in that movie. And if I wanted to feel safe I would have gone ahead and moved back to Boston."

"Did you stay just because I asked you to?"

"Where is this coming from? Duke, what did Mary do?"

"Her name isn't Mary, Jennifer."

"She told you her real name?"

"No, she says she can't unless we're on open water."

"What?"

"There are old legends, superstitions, that certain things could not reach you if you crossed bodies of water. That it's safer on the water."

"Safe from what?"

"Evil."

"But that's just an old superstition isn't it?"

"A lot of things that happen in Haven are just old superstitions."

She couldn't argue with that. "That still doesn't explain why you're so upset. Something is different. The way you looked at me when you saw me. Oh God, Mary told you something about me, didn't she? I mean Nathan said that she could answer our questions and oh WOW do I have some questions now -"

She broke off when Duke grabbed her and kissed her. "What was that for?" She asked, when he released her.

"For being you. No matter what."

She looked at him for a moment before charging back out on deck.

"What did you to Duke?!" She demanded as she charged Mary.

"Excuse me?"

"Did you put some black putty stuff in his head?"

"Did I do _what?!"_

"No, Jennifer," Duke came out of the bridge. "She didn't do anything like that."

"I gave Duke some rather unsettling news."

"About me? What kind of news?"

"Oh for fuck's sake, can we please at least go down below? For a group of people who are usually so closed mouthed I would think you'd make a _show _at being secretive. I've already dispatched one spy and I'm trying to actually keep a low profile."

Her bearing suddenly formal again she turned to Duke, "does this vessel still use a bell?"

"Yeah. I mean, I don't use it, but it has one."

"Is it, by chance, made of iron?"

"It is."

She shuddered. "Give me enough time to get below, then ring it, loudly, nine times."

"Why do I feel like Alice in Wonderland with that woman?" Audrey asked when she was gone.

"And why does it matter if the bell is iron?" Nathan added.

"Because she's not human," Jennifer answered, suddenly realizing something. "She's Fae. They can't tolerate iron. They can't touch it, and when something iron is struck the tone of it hurts them too." At the questioning glances from everyone she supplied, "before I settled on journalism, a lot of my undergrad studies were in English Literature. You run into those myths. Only, I guess they're not just myths, are they?"

Duke went to the bell and pulled away the old wooden stop that had long been attached to it. Looking to Jennifer and Audrey he said, "maybe you two should go down with her?"

"Why?" Audrey asked, feeling increasingly nervous. All three of the men looked uncomfortable. Jennifer caught Duke's eye and suddenly understood. Whatever Mary was, she and Audrey were too. That was what he had found out that had spooked him so much and caused his strange behavior in the bridge.

"Maybe we should go and make sure she'll be okay. I mean, I doubt that just being below deck is really going to help much."

"I'll go down too," Dwight offered and did so. Audrey watched Nathan a moment longer before turning and going after Jennifer.

"You think that's what we're dealing with?" Nathan asked Duke, "Faeries?"

"Would it be the weirdest thing we've considered?" Duke rang the bell loud and slow for nine tolls. "Come on," he sighed. "Let's go down and make sure everyone is okay."

"Are YOU okay with what you just learned about Jennifer?"

"You know, the part we didn't tell you about Mary's arrival, and I'm not even sure Jen knows this…" Duke sighed. "She was glowing that morning. Literally glowing."

"Glowing?"

"Like the sun was shining _through_ her."

"You sure?"

"Oh yeah. Have you ever noticed Audrey…?"

"Not like that. I mean, the way she looks in the light is… just… incredible." Duke wasn't going to think less of Nathan right now for that fool-in-love expression on his face. "Kinda makes you re-think how she can light up a room though eh?"

"Nathan, did you just make a joke?" Nathan gave a shrug and a half smile. "That's kind of creepy."

"What? I got jokes."

"Fuckin' quit." Duke opened the door and went down, leaving Nathan to follow.

By the third ring, Mary was shaking. On the sixth ring, a dark blue fluid began to trickle from her nose and Audrey realized it was blood. By the final ring, blood was coming from her ears. She wanted to ask Jennifer to touch her, to see if she could heal her but she didn't want to put Jennifer in any kind of jeopardy. On the other hand, she didn't want Mary suffering either. Dwight found towels in one of Duke's kitchen drawers and got one wet in order to clean the blood off.

"Are you going to be alright?" She asked Mary.

"Soon enough," the woman responded. "Thank you, Dwight," she murmured as she accepted the towel and started to wipe it off the blood. "The sound can't kill such as me. Anyone weaker out there is like to be dead though. And certainly would have fled."

"So, those answers then?" Duke asked coming in with Nathan.

Mary covered her mouth at a cough and when she withdrew her hand there was blood on it.

"Or, we could wait."

She cleared her throat. "I will be well enough soon. A glass of whiskey if you please though."

"Whiskey?" Dwight questioned.

Duke laughed derisively. "Whiskey," he started in his best impression of a bartender with something to teach, "comes from an old Gaelic word meaning 'water of life.' Proud Mary here could probably live off the stuff, right?" He poured some of the Glennfidditch. "I hope Scotch whiskey is acceptable."

"Preferable, especially when in a full size glass." She eyed the tumbler he was using meaningfully. "And for the record, no, I can't live off of it."

"Right, definitely no free rounds at the Gull for you."

"This isn't funny," Audrey scolded. "Look at her, she's bleeding like those people from the Dirscoll Trouble."

Mary coughed out a laugh and aspirated a little more blood. "I'm fine, sister. I WILL be fine anyway. I promise. It was painful, and I'm sure it's disturbing to see. But you've seen me worse, and were considerably less worried – even in your human form."

"I don't remember any of that."

"I know," Duke handed her the glass and she thanked him. "What I don't know is if I can help or make you remember. Let's all sit down, please." She drank the glass in one swallow again and Duke, rolling his eyes went to get another bottle. Jennifer helped him get tumblers for everyone else and found an ice bucket.

Mary would assume their uneasy pity made them cooperative. Perhaps as much as their brimming excitement to having answers they had sought for so long. When they were gathered, albeit almost too snug she began.

"Audrey Parker, when you were first born, the great glaciers began to recede. The long dormant trees began to renew and buds appeared. Our uncle, for now I will call him the Old Man of the Sea, sent horses racing across the plains. Birds celebrated this sudden warmth with song. The name you were given reflected your status as then ordained by our mother. As Rhiannon, you were the high queen and the bright wave. You are the first born of the Tuatha De Danaan. Yes, Jennifer. We are fae. Among the greatest of the tribes. And yes, iron is a way to kill us. We do not react well to lemon juice either and it can be lethal to our young and unborn. In fact, diluted lemon juice is a highly effective contraceptive. No, Duke. Iron cannot hurt Jennifer and Audrey. They are human enough. Though the lemon juice is arguably a safer option to your Plan-B."

"Enough?" Jennifer asked. "What am I? And - what was that about lemon juice?"

"How did I get to be… Audrey Parker, or Lucy Ripley, or…"

Mary held her hand up for silence. "Please, let's get through identities and then we can begin to weave our stories together. However, let me say that hormonal contraceptives can accelerate growth rate in our unborn so I would get to the lemon juice right away if I were you." She sighed heavily. "After all, you are here because I could not access lemon juice fast enough after a tryst with your father - who happens to be human."

"Don't," Duke growled when he heard Jennifer gasp. "Don't you say that shit to her." His hand reached for hers under the table and he clasped it tight.

Mary ran a hand over her hair, causing some of it to ruffle like copper colored feathers. "But it is the truth. Around thirty years ago I was here, making sure that the being you know as William did not escape and trying to reach Rhiannon. During my time here I met your father. After our… dalliance, I was walking to the shore when I was shot with an iron tipped arrow. Not enough to kill me, which was a shock I think. But when I awakened, I was imprisoned. And by the time I was freed, with some orchestration by Rhiannon, I feared for your life. You were not planned. But you were wanted. And in the dark places between our worlds, both of your aunts defended and protected you as fierce as they would their own." Mary smiled with real warmth now. "When you were born all of the dark corners lit up and doors that had not even been there before burst open. The great Aurora Borealis was seen as far south as the Tropic of Cancer because even the Sun flashed brighter during your birth. It was in the summer, and yet the trees of spring burst into flower again. The ground on which I lay with you became covered in daisies. You, half human, were somehow light incarnate and an agent of re-growth. And before the cord between us could even be cut your first assassination attempt was under way. Your aunts and I however make a fierce trio and obviously you survived. But it was a harsh lesson. Despite the circumstances of your birth you were too vulnerable on our side of the Veil. Rhiannon agreed to return here only after Byron Howard agreed to take you here as well. To hide you well. And so he did. But it would seem you are your mother's daughter. You will not stay hidden and you will not back down. I gave you the name Suile Geala. It means bright eyes."

"Sue La Gala?" Jennifer repeated. She was holding onto Duke's hand with both of hers now. She didn't want it to be true and she wanted to send them all away and look in his eyes and NOT see hesitation and doubt about her. She felt his other hand cover her own two hands and felt his reassurance. She looked to him to find him looking back. He only whispered "bright eyes" to her with a smile.

"Close enough," Mary answered. "I think Jennifer suits you well though. It means fair one."

"Well why would anyone try to kill a baby?"

"Aside from being an heir to the crown, you were demonstrating some uncanny power. Lighting up the Underworld and opening portals as well as creating new ones… All while being only a halfling? I'm afraid there are a great many of my kind who would try that."

"I can't believe this. I don't remember anything you're saying," Audrey protested. "I don't remember being this Rhiannon, I don't remember Jennifer's birth or helping you or anything. HOW did I get to this? What happened? What did I do?"

"You rejected a god. Married a mortal halfling and eventually left him - AFTER hiding his son away from him - Don't worry, he deserved it. Becoming their mutual enemy seemed to give them plenty of common ground and apparently a body. I'm not sure what kind of vile alchemy pulled that shit off. Your story is only partly known here on this part of Earth, it's why saying your name doesn't echo as loudly. If only we could all get Stevie Nicks to write songs about us."

"Is that how I caused the Troubles?"

"No. You didn't really cause them. You did make them worse. And, to this day, I'm not really sure at what point you knew what was happening or at what point you cared about the consequences."

"Am I - is my original self evil?"

"No. Not at all. First of all, you need to understand that a Troubled person carries what you used to define as divine blood. That's what the Mi'kmaq word really means. That this place was meant as a haven for the orphans of God, or rather, the gods. It wasn't too long ago humans thought of us as such. And plenty around the world still do. The ability to influence the weather, affect plant behavior, hold off death… Those are gifts from your fae ancestors. Being unable to control them? That is fairly typical for humans, especially since the general human consensus is a feeling of a lack of power. Generally, one just needs some training or education to handle them. But having them take such lethal turns while still being unable to control them? That is a curse unleashed by a jealous and angry god, wouldn't you say?"

"Is that what the black goo is for?" Jennifer asked.

Mary seemed puzzled for a moment. "I assume you are talking about the flower spore from the bruion a tharraingt lile. Yes. It is used in such a way. THAT particular lily was made for that. But only because it is a corrupted version of the iochshlainte lile."

Now they were puzzled again. "The translation for that would be 'trouble making lily' and 'balm lily' respectively. The iochshlainte lile was meant to help the latter born descendants of the fae deal with their gifts and has been used to keep a created Trouble from spreading through the bloodline. For instance, it can be used to cure both Aiden and Jack Driscoll and therefore stop their descendants from being Troubled. It cannot, however cure an established Trouble. Which makes the power of the bruion a tharraingt lile particularly frustrating and even puzzling."

"William said I made the Troubles, and that is why I have to come back over and over to deal with them."

"William. What an interesting choice of names. I wonder how long he's been using it. You know the name means basically to protect one's desire - or their actual _will_. Have you ever thought about it? What your names mean?"

"Does it _matter?"_ Duke asked testily.

"I believe that this time, they matter a great deal. And your _William_ is lying with the truth. As usual. His real name is Pwyll - you can call him _Paul_ as that is a bit easier for you to pronounce. At least, his human part was known that way. The part you don't see, the powerful angry fae, was once known as Arawn." Mary breathed in deep. "Are you ready? Are you ready to know how your understanding of the Troubles began? Are you ready to understand why you do return, and why you are now human yet somehow immortal? But most importantly, are you ready to finally let go of your past and make your choice?" Even as she finished she rose from her place and went to find a bowl and filled it with water. There was a heavy silence in her wake. The men had spent almost their entire lives wondering why Troubles afflicted their town and their loved ones. Dwight had lost his daughter. Nathan and Duke their fathers. Jennifer had been literally unable to stay away from this place to which she was so intimately bound. And both she and Audrey were struggling to hold on to their identities as they understood them. She set the bowl down on the table and flicked her finger against the rim. "I believe we can begin this then, with your phrase: Once upon a time…"


	7. Chapter 7

Stay

Chapter 7

As she spoke, images began to take shape on the surface of the water. What looked like Audrey riding a horse during the first few days of Spring, followed by birds she seemed to be talking to.

"Once upon a time, the first daughter of the Great Danu heralded Spring in the world. She was beautiful, energetic and intelligent. As you might expect from a spirit of Spring she was creative and determined. And if you're familiar with our Greek cousins you might expect that a being that for one reason or another spends most of his time in the Underworld would begin to covet such a being as our Rhiannon here. And that was the case with Arawn. Not even I am certain of his origins and Mother chooses to keep that information to herself along with what would no doubt fill volumes. Arawn pursued you, almost relentlessly. Luckily, we're not Greek. In our tribe, no female lives under the will of a male. Unless she's into that kind of thing. Arawn knew this but pressed his suit regardless. Generally by trying to cause upset between the land of the living and the land of the dead. You can blame zombies on him. I'm not really kidding. It was Macha who finally put an end to his harassment of you.

"Now, let me say a word or two about Macha. First of all, that's the last I can risk saying her name. Like my own, that name gets attention. Possibly more as hers is spoken even less. But William said it first today so maybe I can just blame it all on him. Anyway, she is our adopted sister, though I think in truth she is quite close to our mother's age. She is a goddess of death and destruction. And while I have an inkling as to her origins they're not really important. Understand this: She is lethal. She is also loyal. And if Arawn was enchanted by you, Rhiannon, so was she, in her way. The dead are ever envious of the living and those who rule over the dead are fascinated with those who can restore life. And when Balor of the Evil Eye killed her, and _you_ brought her back to life with a breath, her loyalty was yours ever after. No matter what stupid fucking decision you made. And thanks to you effecting her resurrection; Balor's Evil Eye couldn't work on her again. So she plucked it out, flayed him alive until she was bored with it and then destroyed him. And I'm not even kidding about that. I'm not sure exactly what she said or did but Arawn seemed to have stopped his harassment of you.

"All of this was unfolding about the time I was born. Incidentally, I herald late Summer and Autumn. Particularly the readying of mead, ale and whiskey. And war. And sex…."

"We got that," Dwight interjected.

"You haven't got the sex part yet, Man of Steel. Now don't interrupt again.

"You, Rhiannon, thought the colors that my birth brought forth were fascinating and you regularly went riding in that season. And that was how you first came across Pwyll. Now, no one has come forth claiming to be either his mother or his father. We know he is a halfling, but that's it. We don't even know to which tribe of fae he would belong. He managed to catch up to you when you taunted him to do so. And he is, as you might have noted, very handsome. You loved him. And, I think as best as he is able, he loved you. You consented to marriage and to live as a human queen for him in his city of Arbehr. Now, this is where the story may get familiar. You gave birth to a son, and he was stolen away while you slept. The nursemaids were cowards and rather than admit to their own neglect framed you for murder."

"She was framed for _eating _her own son!" Jennifer exclaimed. "I always wondered how anyone could think that."

"Humans were still figuring out what mushrooms NOT to eat. No. Seriously. Berries too. And some of which are extinct now. The hallucinations were awful and lead to awful results sometimes. Also, it was known you weren't human. And you were seen in your natural form. We're a little on the… ah… frightening side without this human disguise."

"I don't think I'm wearing a disguise," Audrey responded.

"You're not, by now you actually are in a human body. That's part of your other sister's machinations. And that's a secret she's not sharing. One of _your_ aforementioned stupid fucking decisions though."

"What do you really look like then?" Dwight asked. His curiosity had been piqued earlier when she'd flashed those strange eyes at him. He thought he'd seen her features sharpen.

"That could get a little distracting from our point."

"But it's apparently why people could suspect her of eating a baby.," Jennifer pointed out. "And you said earlier that her leaving Pwyll was part of the reason for the Troubles. I'm guessing that the story of Pryderi would be the reason she left him."

"It is. And it's worth noting that Pryderi literally means 'Trouble.' And now we're just about getting to it, aren't we? But still you want to know how I look without a human glamour. All in the academic interest of understanding how it was thought Rhiannon could eat her own child. Very well."

She stood and took the place at the end of the table. It was almost funny, she thought. Five adults looking at her like she was the feature thriller of the summer. She raised a hand over her face and let the glamour begin to slide away so that the first change they saw was her hand, finger nails shifting to gold colored claws and the skin smoothing into inhuman perfection. She turned her head to the side slightly so that the expected and familiar pointed ears came into view and then finally dropped her hand as she turned to face them. With green eyes that shone unnaturally, and features that were pulled into lines that were sharper and harshened. Cheekbones that were a little too prominent to maintain the perception of beauty. Eyes that were likewise a little too cat like. Lips that formed a rose bud mouth thinned and deciding not to bother holding back at this point she showed her fangs.

"Behold, the origin of the vampire myth," she quipped as they sat there looking stunned and slightly disturbed. She tolerated their scrutiny, letting them take it in. They needed to understand what they were dealing with.

Dwight found the transition fascinating if a little alarming. Maeve - he'd figured her name out during her narrative - was still beautiful, but it was certainly a disturbing beauty. The way one might look on a jungle cat. Or maybe a dragon considering the appearance of fine scales around her eyes that extended to her temples. They were varying colors of red, yellow and copper. She'd joked about vampires, and looking at what could only be described as fangs, it wasn't far off the mark. If she represented what her race looked like, they looked like…

"Predators," Audrey whispered. "We look like predators don't we? And William - Pwyll - that's why he acts like that isn't it? Because he IS a predator. That day he lured me up to the Haven look out to get that box, he kept saying 'us' and 'them' and basically that we were better. But that's why people long ago thought I might do something so horrible. I'm not human after all."

"Well," Maeve began, and waved the glamour back over herself, "you're human enough now. Aren't you? I mean, you bleed red. Iron isn't lethal to you. Not necessarily anyway.

"So, here we are, baby missing. Everyone freaking out. You feeling guilty because even though you know you didn't eat him you still can't find him. And that really should have been our first clue. Only a Fae could pull off hiding something like that. I mean, look back at the water."

The bowl was now showing moving images of Audrey apparently in some kind of trial.

"Pft! Tried by men, you'll notice. Human men. That was really hard to swallow. You were already risking your own crown and realm just to be as wife to that bastard. And, knowing that he can't kill you, and refusing to simply let you go into exile he concocted one of the more infamously sadistic punishments ever. And I, a warrior, was forced to stay my hand. Actually, our sister cut it off. But that's a different story. And why the hell she kept listening to you telling her to stay out of it I couldn't, then, comprehend."

Maeve sighed heavily. "You were angry with Pwyll for not believing in you. I don't think he ever could forgive you for leaving him with the epithet: 'never did a man have so little use for his wits.' THAT was hilarious. Or would have been. And if I can ever put him in a grave I'll make sure that's on the tomb stone. Anyway, your disappointment and anger in even being seriously accused caused all of the horses to leave the city. Nothing could keep them there. Same with most of the birds. And I guess it was the loss of the horses that inspired Pwyll to come up with a punishment wherein for the next seven years, you were to stand at the gates of the city and tell everyone who approached your alleged crime and then offer to let them ride _you_ as a horse into court. I was, by this time, begging our sister _and_ our mother for an intervention. Hell, I had an army ready to go. That's actually when my hand was cut off by the way. Obviously, I regenerate. This went on for three human years, admittedly only minutes from some venues. But injustice and lack of accountability is intolerable to me. In the third year, however, your son finally surfaced. Turns out he had been stashed in a stable in Gwent belonging to a very decent human fellow named Teyrnon. News of your struggle spread and he put the clues together and brought Pryderi home.

"Now, you would think that having his son returned would make Pwyll happy. It didn't. He was a little too surprised and far too little joyous. The jig was up. He'd engineered the whole thing because apparently sharing you with your own son was intolerable to him. He also didn't seem to be able to handle the concept of equal reign. You were supposed to be a trophy. Someone who legitimized his claim to the throne and little more. Inexplicably you forgave him. He was always good at acting; at choosing his words and timing carefully with you. And he managed to make you pity him and make you believe in him again. So you resumed your place beside him. At least until he finally crossed the line.

"Predictably Pryderi adored you right away. Equally predictable was that he resented his father. You were under a lot of stress. And part of that was my fault. We were fighting. Horribly. I really wanted you to leave Pwyll and be the high queen of the fae again, because otherwise the crown was falling to me and that didn't at all suit me at the time. We fought so bad that famine struck the land because we were too far out of balance ourselves and couldn't keep our lands as we should. Naturally, Arbehr was hit first and hardest. And, naturally, you caught the blame. And Pryderi the brunt. Pwyll roused the people toward the concept that we Dananns were traitorous or neglectful and that the people should return to the Fomorians. Which just goes to prove that you people have really short memories. The Fomorians, if they helped humans at all demanded human sacrifice and Pwyll got the idea that a great way to show contrition to the Fomorians was to give them the son of Rhiannon. You, in human form were bound to your throne and powerless to stop him. This time though, I made my appearance. And this time, you were horrified enough with him to give me some leeway. I think also the famine scared you. It scared me too. Famine was something that happened in places like Libya or Jordan or Persia. Where drought could happen. Not on our islands. Not on our coastal regions. The idea that we could and did create a famine because we were so caught up in the affairs of mortals was one of the reasons why we started furthering the divide between our worlds.

"When I came to Arbehr, I showed up in full Fae regalia. No pretense at a human mask and fully armed. Now, you might notice that I'm tall. And when I choose I can appear taller still. So I did. And some of you might have noticed that I move really fast. Pwyll had never seen me before. He knew of my existence and he had a vague notion of what my powers were developing into but he didn't know me. So I gave Pwyll a good thirty seconds to get scared as I stood at the entrance to his court before I had him down on the floor under my boot with two swords strategically placed and asked you what head of his mattered. It wasn't quite as easy as I make it sound. As a halfling he wasn't without his powers. Still, I am who I am, and that's undefeated. You didn't seem too surprised to see me and you told me, there in front of his dick buddies, that you thought he deserved a third chance that included finding a more suitable wife. I let him go and cut you loose. You got up, grabbed Pryderi and left. He tried to follow you and I pinned him to the floor with an arrow in his foot. A scar I just learned you also carry to this day. Which means that you had already found a way to join life forces and you went into that marriage with the intention to stay indefinitely. He mentioned that scar earlier today and only then did I realize that's why our sister wouldn't strike or allow me to do so before.

"Well, now war was brewing. And Pryderi was sort of in the middle of it. And Arawn was seeing a new opportunity. And since you were broken hearted and disappointed and he wasn't being an aggressive dick this go around you paid him some attention. We had other problems too. The descendants of halflings were, frankly, troublesome. Their powers were diluted and lacked refinement; and they lacked training. Not very different from what still goes on here today. If Aileen's mother could pass her hand over a seed and cause it to grow then Aileen could inadvertently get the tree to hurl apples at you with lethal force. For the most part, we sat in our lofty removal of the world and, well, sort of laughed about it. After all, we're NOT human. So human compassion is a bit of a challenge for us to learn. And you had. You'd had real human experience and somehow you still loved them. People were both extremely kind to you as well as cruel and sneering. You saw the best and the worst in both the Fae and the humans. And, soon enough, you stopped seeing the humor and took us to task for it. Still, short of exterminating them there didn't seem to be much that we could do. In fact, we voted and by majority decided that we would do nothing about it. The argument from our brother Finn being that when we did interfere in human affairs we tended to muck them up even more. Of course, Finn is an asshole who can't keep his dick in his pants so maybe he should have started that charity at home. I don't know. Either way, our laissez faire policy didn't last.

"You were not content to do nothing and set about trying to make a tonic that would calm the wild blood in these people. As is often the case, cause was part cure and using some of your blood with the help of our cousin Airmid – mistress of all things gardening - you made the iochshlainte lile. Apparently Arawn was around too. Being supportive, encouraging, helping you with research. Killing things with a touch. And then an accident happened in your kitchen while you were trying to make some improvements. Your blood mingled. And now we have the bruion a tharraingt lile. It took a bit to realize what that flower did. And Arawn got this notion to experiment with it. He convinced you to 'Trouble' a few people and then cure them. And you did. And sometimes it was hysterical to watch. Little Keagan could be pretty normal and ignorant of his fae ancestry and then all of the sudden freak out over a snake or something and hundreds of our sister's ravens would suddenly become missiles forming a blitzkrieg over a village. And then using the iochshlainte lile you cured his Trouble. Again, not funny if you're human or have come to care about humans. But since you and your birds could deliver life back to these people it might seem like no harm, no foul. No pun intended.

"I can see by the horrified expressions on your faces that this would be a good time to remind you also that our people are known to possess a cauldron that can resurrect the dead. Though it's not like Cymidei just lets you grab it out any old time you like. Rhiannon's birds are known to restore life, and her breath. So, we have means of resurrection. And our sister, having power over death can prevent one, though she rarely does it. These are possible reasons why the concept of people dying doesn't really freak us out. That, and reincarnation. I also want to point out the obsession theme going on here. That's important as it tends to happen to us.

"Anyway, after awhile all you had managed to do was prove that the iochshlainte lile couldn't cure a hereditary Trouble. And that the bruion a tharraingt lile was a dangerous mistake that needed to be eradicated. Unfortunately, Arawn was a brooding and obsessive fool and held onto it. Because it was some symbol of your co-mingling. And that is NOT an image I want called forth. Somewhere along the way you also came to love the Troubled very much and you were the original psycho-therapist. For the most part, as long as these people were aware of what they were capable of they could manage along well enough. In most cases the iochshlainte lile could reduce effects."

"So how did the Troubled end up here, in Haven?" Nathan asked.

"That is courtesy of the Old Man of the Sea. He noticed that the native peoples who lived here, ones who were also descendants of the coupling of gods and humans first of all didn't suffer the ills so much and second of all went for pretty good long periods of time without any suffering at all. A little investigation showed that the mineral deposits in the soil, climate, the ocean air, you know, science stuff, actually worked for that. So we started getting people to migrate. Which is always easy to do because humans are unfailingly assholes to each other. And I'll admit that is likely because of your ancestors. Still, Rhiannon felt compelled to help, to come back during those 'Troubled' periods and… do what you do because thanks to the bruion tharraingt lile some of the now hereditary Troubles were actually your fault.

"Now, remember that war I mentioned that was brewing? Pwyll wasn't done. By now he was just as obsessed as Arawn. Only less forward about it. During a period of time that you were here, he found and seized Pryderi to hold him hostage. He had allied himself with the aforementioned Fomorians. They are another race of immortals similar to us. Though generally evil. When you think of Euro-Celtic versions of demons, that would be them. Two of them are currently running around in human form now, you've seen them recently."

"Who ARE they?" Jennifer asked.

"Random soldiers I suppose, I don't know. I haven't seen them and by now their scent it too faint for me to clearly identify. Just that the smell of Fomorian is in the air. Which is going to have a lot to do with why in the last few cycles the Troubles have taken on a more dangerous bent. Like I told the men here earlier, blood calls to blood and any time one of my kind walks here that so-called 'Troubled' blood is going to surge. That's why you choose to become human to be here. Also by your choice and command, your memory of your time here is removed thanks to a powerful potion concocted by Airmid and Cuhvetena."

"Who is that?"

"Airmid is, as mentioned a goddess of herbs and a skilled sorceress. Cuhvetena is one of what we call the Washers at the Ford. Meaning as you cross over to death she cleanses you of memory of your past life so you can move onto the next."

"Why would Audrey want that?"

"Because I wouldn't want to see the people I care about die like that. I wouldn't want to remember all the people I come to love and then have to watch them grow old or sick and die."

"Until or unless you fell in love and didn't want to do it anymore. Therefore choosing a final, mortal life within to work. Personally, I thought that was why you chose Audrey Parker. She's virtually made to order for this gig. But let's stay on point. Remember Pryderi held hostage? And remember I said war was brewing? Well, it's erupting. Bres, the grandson of Balor doesn't need much of a pretext to attack us. He just needed a bigger army. And Pwyll was able to deliver that to him."

"Where are my sons? I know about James, I - I don't know anything about Pryderi."

"James is in a safe place. Oh, Rhiannon, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that you don't really get to grieve. The reason the bruion tharraingt lile is still in play, the reason that it carries such potency, is because Arawn used Pryderi's blood to grow an orchard of them."

Audrey looked sickened and angry at the idea and Maeve couldn't help but be pleased by the flash of vivid, fae, blue eyes that accompanied her expression.

"Nathan here is not the first human you have come to care about while here. A couple of hundred years ago you became very close to a man named Fitzwilliam Crocker. Arawn couldn't handle it. He saw himself as having invested too much time and energy in you only to discover that you didn't want him like that. He was also screeching about how you LIKED that the humans were Troubled and needed and wanted you to come. And even Pwyll was raging about how you were his wife. We didn't do formal divorces. We still don't. You leave the home the marriage is over so I don't know what he thinks his claim is but BOTH of them thought they had a claim. And suddenly they had common ground. Arawn switched sides and suggested to Pwyll that they should team together to strip you of all other choices and then to make a gentleman's agreement as it were to see which of the two you would settle on. My money says that Arawn was going to kill Pwyll all along but that's a moot point because when I realized that Arawn had betrayed us, I laid waste to his body. But I couldn't destroy him. I'm not even sure Macha could do that. And she was occupying herself with taking out as many Formorians as she could. So his _will,_ his spirit as you would say, found refuge in Pwyll. Get it now? William, or Wilhelm, means that the desire or _will _of one is protected or shielded. Like there is a helm over the will? Now, you get it. And that could only happen if Pwyll allowed it and if he had some training in sorcery. Arawn took possession of Pwyll and with Pryderi in his grasp decided to strike out at you in an incredibly vicious manner.

Arawn kept one bruion tharraingt lile, and he used the spores from that flower, and a LOT of Pryderi's blood to grow an orchard of the trees from which they bloom. The rest of the boy's blood? He spilled all over the land here, on the land you know as Haven, into Derry, and several surrounding towns. Ultimately, the Troubles are named after him. And that action altered some of the properties of the ground here and contaminated the water supply. Again, another way in which the Troubles were made worse. And still you blame yourself. For not setting enough guardianship over him. Sometimes, and rightfully so, you blame me or our sister for not protecting him well enough or finding and saving him in time. It didn't stop you from saving me and Jennifer though. And while I've always had your back, this time around I'm getting up in front. I WILL find a way to put that bastard in the ground forever, preferably dead but if you can't be separated then I'll bury him alive and call it good. It's long since time you got to live your life Rhiannon."

Audrey was crying by now and Nathan wrapped his arm around her to draw her close. "I have a son, TWO sons! And I don't remember them. And one of them is dead?"

"I'm sorry, sister. It should comfort you to know that James is safe. He is in the care of our Aunt Morrigan. She will protect him and when it is safe and he is healed, he will return here."

"He's an adult though. God, he must hate me."

Nathan lifted her hand in his and kissed her there. "No, Audrey, shush, he couldn't."

"Why would he hate you? As Sarah you had no idea you could do anything but give him up. The Guard at that time was already corrupted and threatened him. What mother wouldn't do what she could to protect him? Like Jennifer, he had a safe childhood. Also like Jennifer he couldn't seem to be kept away from this place. He came in search of you like many adopted children do. He found danger and intrigue instead."

"How… how did you get him from the barn?"

"I followed what I knew would be your wishes and pulled him through first. By the time I got him into Morrigan's hands Byron Howard was too damaged to maintain the barn and the portal. You ended up in a sort of dimensional pocket under William's control. You were already assuming your next identity… and I think you know the rest of that bit."

"Who is Byron Howard? And is he dead?"

"His name literally means barn guardian. He's not dead but he's in our equivalent of ICU. He'll be okay."

"Why did William seem to care so much when we were in the bar?"

"The bar?"

"It looked like a bar. I was a bartender."

"Oh. Interesting. He does care. It may be a sick and twisted love, but it's the best he can do."

"What I'm hearing here is though, that there's no real end for the Troubles?" Duke asked.

"None really that I am aware of."

"But Howard said that I could end the Troubles if I was willing to kill what I love most. That's why everyone thought I should kill Nathan."

"And if everyone thought you should jump off a fucking cliff would you try it? Daghda's balls everyone, what the hell makes you all so death happy? Thanks for that mention, when Howard wakes up I'll slap him back to unconsciousness. Remember who else I said you loved? The Troubled people, themselves? My guess is that Agent Asshole was trying to get you to go on a holocaust mission. Maybe I'll just have him interrogated instead. Kill them all and the Troubles are ended. Or get a Crocker to go on a killing spree. Which doesn't seem right, either, does it? We all know what a cross that is to bear. In fact, that's what the name Crocker means - cross bearer. And yes, though I'm not sure how, that curse was designed to keep the most horrific of the Troubles in check."

"What happened to Arla?"

"She is not in a safe place, and that is all I will say on that matter."

"Can you tell me who were the people that were trying to erase me when I was Lucy Ripley?"

"I'm not for certain but I suspect Formorians, hell, possibly The Guard."

"What do you know about The Guard?" Dwight asked.

"Originally a band of teagues made up from both members of the Mi'kmaq tribe and Troubled immigrants. I'm not sure when, but I'm fairly certain they've been compromised or infiltrated. The aggressive manner in which they tried – and succeeded - to get Sarah, Lucy and Audrey back into the barn, and the fact that the last three times you've gone in, there's been an attempted abduction or attack. It's why I was here in 1981, getting ready for your arrival. We had received information that an attempt would be made upon your arrival here. Given what happened, I have reason to believe that was a set up. For all the good it did them."

"You say 'teague' like it's a word instead of a name," Jennifer pointed out. "Who, or what are they?"

"They are messengers or servants. The word is Irish for 'bard.' At one time they were the record keepers of the Celtic lands, most notably Ireland. They also carried the news from one castle keep to the next and they held a great deal of influence and authority, mostly because of their relationship with us. And yes, Vince and David Teague are known to me. Also, yes, I am known to them. Sort of. They don't know your origins, Rhiannon. And they don't know quite exactly who I am either. But as would be expected, they know a lot of history and they guard their information carefully and jealously. As I'm sure you've caught on. But deal gently with them, much of what they do is at your command."

"What happened to the ick-slantay lily?" Jennifer asked.

"Oooh… Just stick with tonic water lily okay? They're still grown. That is one of the items I will be collecting tomorrow when I meet my teague on Kick 'Em Jenny Neck."

"How did Audrey's leg heal so quickly?" Nathan asked. "Is it because of how William healed himself?"

"Wait," Audrey interrupted, "William healed himself?"

"Uh… yes, William healed himself. Or, rather used one of the bruion tharraingt liles to do it. Which is a property I didn't know they had. I really want to get my hands on one now. Audrey's leg healed because… well, show them ladies. Show them how blood calls to blood."

Jennifer realized she had still been clutching onto both Duke's hands and pulled one free. She looked up at him to see him staring at her questioningly. Over the questions in his eyes he smiled at her and laced his fingers through hers on the hand he still held.

Audrey reached her hand across the table toward Jennifer who extended her own. A few inches before they met halfway across the table their fingertips began to glow again, the light spreading down through their hands, their arms, when their eyes began to glow Dwight whispered an oath. From where he sat, Nathan could see Jennifer's eyes begin to glow amber bright. He instinctively looked to Duke and saw Duke's gaze riveted onto Audrey's eyes. He turned and craned his neck to see her eyes glowing in much the same way as Jennifer's, only blue. From his peripheral vision he took note of Duke mirroring him to take in Jennifer.

Jennifer felt the warmth get a little too close to hot again and pulled away, watching Audrey and knowing that the light would appear to ebb out of herself the same as it did the person she realized now was her aunt. She turned to Mary.

"Would it be the same? If I… If I touched you?"

The woman nodded in the affirmative. "And the same again if I was to touch Audrey."

"Who are you?" Jennifer pleaded.

"It's still…"

"I know who you are," Dwight announced. "Is it safe enough if a human says it?"

"Under most circumstances, yes."

"You're Maeve. The queen of the Faeries."

Audrey noticed that Maeve seemed to have braced herself for something to happen. Seconds passed and the whole group seemed to be holding their breath until Maeve let her own out.

"Okay. Yeah. We'll go with that. Obviously, it wasn't who I originally was." She gestured toward Audrey. "You kind of interrupted my preferred career as most immature immortal ever. Can't really do that and rule over one, let alone two, unruly fae tribes."

"Um… Sorry?" Audrey offered.

Maeve waved her hand dismissively. "No, you're not. Not really. And it's okay. I wouldn't give the crown up now. Much like having a child, I didn't know I wanted to until I already had it. Some would call me rash or reckless, and they wouldn't be too far off the mark. But in my relatively short time on the throne I've united the Sidhe with us and kept the Formorians cornered. I've upheld the borders between worlds quite well with one exception: Here. And so now you know that it's not just sisterly love that brings me here to help you make your choice and end your cycle of heartbreak here. If I can do this, and crush the Formorians once and for all, my critics and naysayers would be silenced and my crown secured. As well as Jennifer's safety."

"Wait, my safety? Here?"

"Should you choose to stay here. By the time I'm finished, you should be able to make your choice. But yes, even though I can equip you with weapons and some training, if a Formorian was to come after you, or even one from one of my own tribes… It's not a risk I'm willing to take. Duke is right to urge you to stay on the boat, it's harder to find or track you on the water, and they're less likely to attack. The Old Man of the Sea is loyal enough.

"Now halflings and humanoids; it's late and the days have been long for you for many months. Since William currently thinks his worst nightmare might be lurking about, you should have a reasonably peaceful day tomorrow. Also tomorrow, as I mentioned before, I will be meeting my teague on the island to pick up a trunk full of goodies. So the five of you can do whatever it is you do when you're certain no one's looking. I'll take that room down the hall no one really seems to want."

Audrey noticed Duke looking pensive and worried, while Jennifer looked slightly confused. It was too easy to imagine what Duke might be worried about at this point. A blind man would notice how he felt about Jennifer. There was something about that, that caused a very quiet bell to go off inside, but she dismissed it for now. She wanted her own time with Nathan too. To process everything they had learned. It was reassuring that William had been lying, but there was no comfort in knowing that at some point, some part of her had chosen to become so bound to him that they would share injuries. Was that a connection that could be undone? And she still didn't remember being Rhiannon. She felt horrible because of her two sons she couldn't bring herself to feel a real connection to either of them, and one was dead while the other was in the care of some aunt she didn't know.

"Hey." She smiled at Nathan's voice, at his warmth wrapping around her, reassuring and grounding her. "You wanna go home now?" She liked that he referred to her place as home. She looked up into his blue eyes and felt like she already was home. "Yes. Let's go home now."

"Maeve," she began as they stood, "uh… thanks, for all the answers, finally." This was awkward, Maeve was her sister but still, she had no memory of family at all. As Audrey Parker she had been raised in foster care, her implanted memories didn't include having family either, but didn't sisters hug? Especially in cases like this? She didn't really want to put on a light show again either.

As though reading her mind Maeve smiled and tilted her head to one side. "We're not the hugging type."

"Oh. Good. I didn't really feel like I might be."

"No. I mean, you were a nice enough big sister when I was as a child, but you were more the pinch my nose type. And I'd prefer you didn't do that again. Ever."

Audrey couldn't imagine anyone pinching the nose of the woman who stood before her now. "I do have one question." Maeve raised her eyebrows as a way of encouraging her to proceed. "That light thing that happens when Jennifer and I touch, is that something that happens where we come from?"

Maeve shrugged. "It's not noticeable if it does. It's hard to describe but our birthplace looks different from this part of Earth. Everything looks a little more light infused on our side. If you think of the Underworld as always being dark, think of Albion as always being light."

"Albion?"

Maeve shrugged again. "One of many names." She smiled with real warmth and fondness and the room seemed to brighten. "Now, go home. Do things that would make even me blush and celebrate what you have." As they went upstairs to leave, Maeve took the water and poured it down the drain.

"I'm out of here too," Dwight announced. "You really think tomorrow will be Trouble free?" He asked Maeve.

"In comparative terms, yes. I'm pretty sure that William will be trying to lay low or gather reinforcements."

Dwight nodded. "So what happens the next day?"

"The sun comes up, and for all I know all hell will break loose. I'm too sane to be a soothsayer, Dwight. I can only tell you that I'm here now. Today, I destroyed a portal William was using to move between worlds. Tomorrow I will have something that can help un-do some of what he has been up to. William or one of his lackeys could attack me on the way"

"What portal are you talking about?" Duke asked.

"The tree stump up on Haven look out. It was once an Alder, was it not? They can be used as portals through the worlds. He had been using it as a sort of half way point in which to hide the box in which he keeps the bruion tharraingt lile."

"Is that how he got here?"

"I don't know. Please. Let us end the day. Inter-dimensional travel is tiring and so is withstanding the clang of an iron bell. I'm about as badass as they come but I know when I need to gather my strength. Go home, Dwight. You have answers enough today don't you? Even Audrey knew when enough was enough. And you at least all know who you are. Your memories are all real. Tomorrow I walk into a possible trap, I'd like to be rested and recovered."

Dwight eyed her a moment longer and said goodnight to them all.

"I have to go to work tomorrow - No more putting off the new job," Jennifer conceded. She gathered up glasses and brought them into the sink to rinse. "Um, so, do I call you 'Mom?'"

"If or when it ever feels natural to you do so. Be cautious tomorrow. It's only a matter of time before I am discovered here. And when that happens a great deal of attention is likely to be turned toward you."

"What will we do then?"

"Teach you how to defend yourself by both martial and magickal means."

"I can do magick?"

"Sweetheart, you can open invisible inter-dimensional doors and light up like a lantern. If that's not magick, I don't know what is."

Jennifer turned to Duke and smiled. "Maybe there's more stuff I can do."

"There probably is," Maeve answered. "I still don't know what kind of fae gifts you have. You're still sort of a wild card at this point. And in the sort of fae games being played right now wild cards are highly unwelcome."

"Games?"

"It may be a poor choice of words but don't forget, we're not human. We don't see and feel things the way you do. We also have way, way better hearing than you. So, you know, just consider that for tonight and I promise tomorrow I'll get a hotel room." With that she moved past them and went to Wade's old room.

"Huh. Well, that's not awkward." Duke murmured when she left.

"I guess she was maybe trying to keep it from getting that way?"

He sighed and went to her, taking her in his arms and hugging her close before lifting her up. "Come on Princess, let's get you off to bed."

She giggled at the gesture and title. "_Your _bed, right?"

"If you're still willing to share one with a common criminal."

"Duke Crocker, there is nothing common about you."

His smile didn't quite reach his eyes as he set her down. "Duke? What's wrong?"

He sighed, not even knowing where to begin, and began getting undressed. Jennifer, wanting to give him as much a feeling of normalcy as possible, followed suit and waited for him to continue.

"I'm just thinking about what Maeve - your _mom_ - said about you, your birth…. The whole crazy story."

"Yeah, when Vince and Dave gave me that information for my birth parents I sure didn't think one of them would end up being a faery queen."

"It would be interesting to know how or why Vince gave you misleading information about them."

Jennifer shrugged before tugging her jeans off. "If Howard was so good about setting up an identity for Audrey, it's reasonable to think that he was equally good at setting up fake birth and adoption records for me." Duke was closest to the laundry hamper so she handed them to him and pulled off her sweater, tossing that along with her bra to him. She quirked a brow to discover him completely naked.

Duke smirked at her evident surprise and stepped forward to remove her panties. "It's 'go commando or go home' in my bed, Princess."

"Okay, my man sleeps in the buff. Good to know."

There was a surprising sense of routine in getting into bed with Jennifer that Duke was equally surprised to find comforting. She slid into bed beside him and rolled to her side, propping herself up on her elbow to look at him. He lay on his back and looked at her questioningly.

"You okay, babe?"

"I don't know…. Are _you _okay? I mean, with the fact that I'm not even wholly human?"

He smiled wistfully and brushed his hand across her cheek. "I was definitely surprised, but it makes sense, considering what you can do. Audrey too, for that matter." He rolled onto his side to face her, mirroring her. "Maeve seems to think that you'll be able to go home soon."

"I thought I already was home."

"Don't you even want to know what you're missing over there?"

"A bunch of people who are pretty but scary that may or may not have tried to kill me right after I was born? And maybe want to kill me still? No, thanks. Is that what's bothering you? That I might not want to be here with you any more?"

"Part of it. I don't like that some of those people are still going to try and kill you. And I don't like that there doesn't seem to be a way to end the Troubles."

"She did say that the yick-shlantee lil could sort of reduce the effects of some of the worst of the Troubles."

Duke laughed and fell back onto his back. "Oh, man."

"What?"

"You are determined to get that word right aren't you?"

She hit him with her pillow. "Yes! Yes I am!"

"That was worse than your first try." He laughed more and she took another swing at him with the pillow but he blocked her, and rolled her beneath himself. He gazed down at her a moment.

"How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Pull me."

"Pull you how? Where?"

"Like a riptide. Anywhere you want."

"I guess it's just one of my magick tricks."

He settled onto his side next to her, keeping her in his arms. She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him on the place above his heart.

"You know I want to keep you, right Princess?"

"You know I'm going to stay, right Pirate?"


	8. Chapter 8

Stay

Chapter 8

Jennifer woke the next morning to the familiar warmth of Duke's hand cupping her face and caressing her neck. She next felt the brush of his thumb across her mouth, she gave the pad of his thumb a kiss before opening her eyes. He was already dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Ohmigod, what time is it?" She sat up and began to scramble out of bed. Duke smiled and slowed her down easily, pulling her into his lap.

"Relax, it's not quite six yet. I was just watching you sleep."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I've never had a real, live faery princess in my bed before."

"That begs the question of if you've ever had a dead one?"

"No. But I had a fake one."

"Excuse me?"

"Halloween, 1998."

Jennifer tried to quash the flash of jealousy that flared inside and reminded herself that she wasn't even out of high school by that point. She did wiggle out of his lap though. Naturally, Duke noticed her ire.

"Are you jealous of Tinkerbell?" He asked with a grin.

"No. Tinkerbell was a pixie, not a faery or a princess. And I'm annoyed that, once again, I have no clothes in here."

He laughed. "The only thing memorable about her was that it took weeks to get rid of all the glitter." He shrugged out of his shirt to hand it to her.

This time she laughed and accepted the shirt, only buttoning two or three before peeking down the hall to make sure the way was clear to slip into her own room.

"Maeve is topside, I think."

"Okay. I'm going to grab some clothes and take a shower." She raised up on tiptoe to kiss him and he noticed that the move was a lot like a ballet step.

"Did you take dance?" He caught her in his arm and held her for a moment but she didn't settle her weight on him, holding the stance instead.

"Yes, even all the way through college. I've been both Clara and the Sugar Plum Fairy. Oh. Wow. How's that for irony?"

"That's excellent irony. You know, dance is actually a pretty good foundation to learning self-defense."

"Really? Cool. I'll be the most graceful ass kicker you ever saw."

He smiled and let her go after kissing her again. "You want coffee?"

"Of course. Ooh, maybe I should have some kind of tea with lemon? What's the most caffeinated tea you have?"

"Earl Grey, coming up." He slipped on another shirt, went into the kitchen and set a kettle on to heat. Maeve was there, leaning against the counter and eating an apple.

"Good morning," she greeted.

"Good morning to you, too." He returned. "Can I ask you something?"

"Yes."

"And will you answer?"

"I don't guarantee your satisfaction in the answer."

"Naturally. How did you know I lost my Trouble?"

"It wasn't really a Trouble per se. And we can see those things in people."

"What makes you say it wasn't a Trouble?"

"First of all, being cursed and being troubled aren't the same. And for the record, I wouldn't exactly call it a curse either. The Greek gods had a way of bestowing gifts that were also curses and that's much of what the so-called Crocker Curse is. Or was. But to answer your question, we fae can actually see a Trouble the way some of your human brethren can see auras. Remember, blood calls to blood. And we can see traces of it in or around you. I can tell you this much: Remember my other sister I mentioned? She's the progenitor of your family line. That's why, to quote Buffy the Vampire Slayer, 'death is your gift.' What you were capable of doing was actually being able to channel some of her powers of both death and destruction."

Duke leaned back against the wall facing her and crossed his arms. She reached behind her and grabbed another apple, offering it to him and then tossing it to him when he nodded.

She smiled at him. "Explains a lot, doesn't it?" He nodded again and took a bite.

"If you know that she's my ancestor, what do you mean about not knowing how my Trouble was designed? And I thought Rhiannon was the one who was getting it on with ol' Fitzwilliam Crocker."

"Well, no one else's seems to have such a crystal clear design does it? They never had sex, I said she was CLOSE to him. 'Fitz' is an appellation that indicates bastardy. Rhiannon was his _aunt._ That was kept secret enough that neither Pwyll or Arawn was able to figure out what all the closeness was about. I think she was using the name 'Olivia' at the time and as that human, she didn't even know for herself why she felt the way she did about Fitz. Kind of like some of Audrey's confusion of feelings about you? My adopted sister is quite the mystery. I don't doubt her loyalty but she keeps many secrets about what she knows and what she can do. And she's only given birth ONCE - and to a halfling? I don't think that's an accident. I think it's by design. I get the why, it makes sense from her perspective. I just don't get the how."

"Audrey and I kissed in Colorado." Duke felt a little sickened at the thought.

"Yeah, I know. Hilarious…. OH. You're weirded out. Relax. First of all – adoption! Second of all there are quite a few generations in between and neither of you had any idea. And, as you learned, THAT kind of relationship wasn't going to work for you for a variety of reasons."

"You were the eagle I saw last night, weren't you?"

"How did you guess?"

"They're not all that common around here and you're known to be a shape shifter. Also, the timing was too good."

"Yes, it was me. That's how I spied on William too. He didn't see the eagle though, he could only register that a bird landed and I kept to the shadows."

"So did you hear us when we talked about how the bruion tharraingt lile affected Jennifer?"

"Yes. And don't let her catch you speaking Gaelic that well. She'll get terribly jealous. I'm fairly surprised that it can affect her that way, it's all the more reason I need to get a hold of one. So I can find out how they were altered with Pryderi's blood. I don't know how or if Audrey would be affected by a similar treatment. Don't forget, Jennifer is half human. And Audrey is a hot alchemical mess. They can't transform into anything that looks like my natural form and they can't shapeshift. They will have a great deal of human frailty while lacking the most crucial frailty that I have - my aversion to iron. And yet, as you've seen, Jennifer has some pretty impressive powers."

"There are some spores in the medical examiner's office, I bet Dwight can arrange to get one to you. One thing I didn't get from everything you said last night: WHY does William want Haven to be Troubled so much?"

"I think, among other reasons, it creates instability in Albion. Rhiannon coming and going is, frankly, kind of a threat to my hold on the crown. It's not that she would challenge me for it. She's been fairly clear about never having been that interested in it herself. But she's the first born and her name literally means "Great Queen." A great number of our people don't really see me as a legitimate queen. My name means "Intoxicated Woman." Hardly a moniker to inspire confidence. And here on the human realm I'm mostly known for a cattle raid. And for being the world's biggest slut. Again, not what most of the fae are looking for in a leader. The fae can be just as prejudiced and judgmental as humans. That instability leaves Albion vulnerable. Believe me, Rhiannon loves Nathan as much as Audrey Parker does. So getting Audrey to accept or acquire Rhiannon's memories would only be a good thing. But she has to choose who and what she's going to be. Too many lives are depending on it."

The whistle on the kettle blew then and Duke poured Jennifer's tea. He reached for a lemon only to find that Maeve had already cut one in half and was squeezing both halves into the cup.

"The WHOLE lemon?"

Maeve snorted. "Trust me."

Duke frowned a little. He wasn't ready to be a father and wouldn't even dream of asking Jennifer to go through with a pregnancy she didn't want, but still… He saw Maeve roll her eyes.

"Man, learn some biology. It takes at least seven days for a fertilized egg to implant itself onto the wall of the uterus. It isn't MUCH different for a fae either. Both Plan B for a human, and lemon juice for a fae work to keep that from happening. So make it a daily ritual, dear girl," she told Jennifer who was coming up from behind. Dressed in a dark blue short skirt and matching tailored jacket with a cream colored camisole printed with blue flowers that matched the color of the rest of the suit, she looked amazing. She carried a pair of cream colored heels in her hands. Maeve handed her the tea.

"Lemon juice a daily ritual?" Jennifer set the shoes on the floor, took a sip of the tea and wrinkled her nose. "Oh. Oh GAWD. Did you use the WHOLE lemon? Jesus, this is awful."

"It's not Jesus' fault. And yes, guessing what you two have been up to, plus the use of your Plan B, use the whole lemon tomorrow too. After that, a wedge will do. Daily. Until or unless you're ready to be a parent."

Jennifer opted for slamming the awful concoction like she might a bad bar drink. "Have you told Audrey this? She and Nathan need to know."

"My next and immediate errand," Maeve responded.

"Can you read minds?" Duke asked suddenly.

"Not really. Not without some effort. Mostly it's just the same way you read people. Now, I'm going to go deliver a lemon to my big sis and provide her with the same helpful advice. How do you think they'll react when I cop knock the shit outta _that_ door?" Moving at super speed, she was gone before they could answer.

Duke and Jennifer exchanged glances as she left and shrugged at the same time.

"Do we have any toaster waffles?"

"I'm hurt you have to ask," he responded and grabbed a box out of the freezer to toss to her.

She put two into the toaster and watched as he got out butter and syrup so she would know where they were.

"Did I over hear her giving you a biology lesson?"

"Ahh… It's nothing I didn't already know. Just that… Look, I'm not in a hurry to be a dad and I would never ask you or try to make you… but…."

"I know. I'm not in a hurry to be a mom, but I wasn't really in a hurry to AVOID it altogether either. It's just that the timing is all…."

"Wrong," he finished.

"Apocalyptically wrong." She put her shoes on. "And we still have a lot to learn about each other. I mean, I just found out about your torrid affair with Tinkerbell, not to mention the stash of frozen toaster waffles - and you just found out that I was a dancer. Technically I still am, just, reporting was the career I really wanted. Dancing is more of a hobby." She caught him smiling. "And I've heard enough 'Tiny Dancer' jokes to last a lifetime, okay?"

He raised his hands in surrender and laughed. "Come here and hold me closer, anyway?"

She pulled a face as the toaster popped up the two waffles. "Just for that you can get your own waffles."

"Someone is grumpy without their coffee in the morning."

"You got that right. We'll be making this lemon ritual an evening thing." She added butter and syrup to her waffles. "You want a ride over to the Gull?"

"I was going to see if you wanted a ride to work this morning."

"Why? So you could make sure I got there all safe and sound?" She said it part jokingly but couldn't help feeling a little annoyed at the babysitting attempt. Duke was suddenly very serious.

"Actually, yes. You need to take this seriously Jennifer. I need you safe. And you can be damn sure that I'll be taking it seriously."

"I DO take it seriously Duke. But I'm not going to live in fear either. And I'm certainly not going to hide away here on your boat. Not even handcuffed, naked to your bed." She turned away and cut into her waffles to take a bite but the fork never made it to her mouth. Duke had both of her wrists pinned in one hand and used the other to sweep the plate over the other side onto the floor. Before she could react he had her turned around and, again, forcing her to lean too far back over the counter top. It was too much like when Wade had attacked her and she saw in his eyes that his intent had been just that.

"Don't tempt me, Princess. And don't push me. There is very little that could keep me from doing just that and then sailing the hell out of here if that's what I thought I had to do to keep you safe. If you're going to just pretend the danger isn't real, or that you are somehow magically exempt from it, then I WILL do just that. Do I need to remind you of how many times you've come too close to dying since I dragged you here?" His free hand came to rest on her neck where Wade had cut her. There was no visible sign of it now, it must have healed when Audrey's wound healed, but he would always see it. And it would always be one more mark against him and his inability to protect the people close to him.

"Duke, you're not responsible for me -"

"The HELL I'm not! And one of us needs to be."

She struggled against his grip, tears shining in her eyes. "I am NOT a child." She hated her vulnerability.

"Then don't act like one!"

"You are hurting me. Let go."

He pulled her away from the counter top but didn't release her. Instead he leaned down and spoke low in her ear. "Someone who wants to hurt you isn't very likely to stop after you tell them they're being successful at it." She was crying by now and he hated himself a little for doing this to her. "I CAN'T lose you, Jennifer. Okay? I just CAN'T."

He released her wrists and tried to hold her in an embrace, but when she twisted to free herself, he let her go.

"You son of a bitch! Don't you EVER do that to me again!"

She wheeled on him and shoved at his chest. He didn't know what she really meant by it because unfortunately there wasn't enough force to really impact him. He knew she felt betrayed though. He hadn't really hurt her, he had scared her. Of all the people around her, he wasn't the one who was supposed to strike at her, she was supposed to be safe in his arms and he had just violated that trust. He just hoped she would understand and forgive him. She took an open handed swing at his face and he blocked her, grabbing her wrist again.

"Don't," he warned. She used her free hand to make a fist and punched at his shoulder. He let her have that one but when she drew back for another strike he stopped her. "When you swing upward like that, toward the face, you leave too much of your own body unguarded. And your punch on my shoulder just now? Would have made a little more impact if you'd been holding your wrist straight and steady, and if your fist would have been closed right. Tonight, after you've had another whole lemon to put you in a fighting mood, we start teaching you how to defend yourself - got it? For now, let's go get breakfast at the Black House, okay? I'm buying. I'm also driving."

"I don't really want to go anywhere with you right now."

"I know. I don't blame you. But will you? Last night we found out that you're a mark for assassination. Let me… do what I need to do here."

"Well, last night we also found out that the same people who want to assassinate me are basically possessed of super human strength. What are you going to do if one of them decides to make a move? Maeve moves so fast we can't even see it. Who knows how strong she is, or any of the rest of them. How can you stand against that Duke? Do you think that I want to see you die? For me? Do you think _I _want lose _you_?"

He eyed her for a moment. "Okay, do you know how to use a gun?"

"Sort of. I did a story on women carrying hand guns for the Globe once and did a little shooting at a gun club for research."

"Alright, wait here." He set off toward the hold leaving her there to deal with her tremors and left over anger. She looked at the mess of waffles on the floor and while she really wanted to leave it for Duke she couldn't leave it there either. She understood the reason for his high handed tactic but she wasn't excusing him for it any time soon. She was wetting down a towel to clean the syrup off the floor when he came back in carrying what she recognized as a double action only revolver.

"You know what this is?"

"Yeah, double action only. Easy to use but has a recoil like a bitch."

"You can handle it?"

"It's been awhile, but I think I could manage. You think it would work on a faery?" She dropped the towel on top of the syrup and butter and used her foot to scrub.

"Agent Howard is in whatever their version of ICU is like so, yeah, I think you could do some damage. How's your aim?"

"Not very good, really." She bent to pick up the towel.

"Well, we'll be working on that too then. In the meantime, hopefully you won't even have to draw, let alone fire."

"Oh, so I'm free to go then?"

"Jen - I'm sorry. I just - "

"I get it, Duke. But you can't treat me like that. I can't deal with that from you. And I don't want to have to try."

He nodded and handed her the gun.

"Do I even want to know where…?" He was already shaking his head and she let it go. It really wasn't surprising that he might have an armory stashed away somewhere on the boat. She put it in her purse and went to the stairs to go up and leave and stopped. She didn't want to leave things like this. "I'll probably be cooled off by lunch if you want to join me."

He moved toward her and she met him half way, all but running into his arms.

"I'm sorry," he repeated as he caught her.

"Good," she mumbled against his chest. She stood in his arms again knowing she'd always been safe there and comforted in how solid he was. "I'm sorry too. It's not that I don't appreciate what you've done or what

you're trying to do but I can't _live _being afraid all the time. And neither can you. Now I'm going to take my gun, my car and my SELF to work. I'll meet you for lunch at the Gull around Noon?"

"As you wish."

She smiled back at him as she walked out.

Duke pulled his phone out and dialed. "Hey Dwight, I have a favor to ask."

"Let me guess," Dwight responded giving both Audrey and Nathan a face, "you want me to put a tail on Jennifer."

"Uh, yeah. How'd you know?"

"You're only the third person to ask me since the sun came up."

"What?"

"I think her mom might have literally flown over to my house this morning to ask. Now her aunt and would be uncle are suggesting it and oh, look, now her boyfriend is too. Does she know ANY of you are doing this?"

"No, and if she did, she'd be pissed. We just had a fight about it."

"Well, as cute as that sounds, I need to get off here and find a plainclothes to put on her six and take care of other police chief things that don't happen to involve personal protection for Haven's favorite new girl." He clicked off abruptly.

"I hope Maeve was right about William laying low today. We're still trying to deal with yesterday's vol- gas leak explosion," he finished as a uniformed officer went by. "Come on, my office."

"It would be nice to have a little breathing room for a change and do some actual police work. Maybe even something mundane," Audrey affirmed as she took a seat in what was now Dwight's office. "Do we have anything like that?"

"Not really, everything is being directed toward helping with clean up and repair, as well as rescue and recovery.

"Plus one plainclothes officer for Jennifer, right?"

"For what it's worth, I don't want anything bad to happen to her either guys. She's a good kid." Dwight picked up the office phone and made a call. 'Yeah, James, I need you to follow someone today, discreetly, just to keep an eye out for them… Jennifer Mason…Black Toyota Rav4, new model, Massachusetts tag. No, do not approach, unless it's to intervene…Nothing happens to her, got that? Great. Thanks."

"Okay, you guys remember Ezra Colbert? He managed to escape from the mental institution yesterday. And mysteriously enough, the surveillance cameras were all malfunctioning, there's only static, so we don't know how he got out. Audrey, you've managed to take him down before, think you could do it again? What's so funny?"

"The last time I faced off against Colbert I got Duke to blank his mind and create a series of diversions. I don't know that I'll be able to repeat that though."

"Well, first you're going to have to find the guy." Dwight handed them the case file and dismissed them.

Maeve stood in the shallows of the island that had served as her sister's portal between worlds for hundreds of human years. Somewhere underneath she herself had been held, tortured, rescued and gone into labor. Both Macha and Rhiannon had given their blood to keep her alive and save Suile Gaela – Jennifer. No wonder so many wanted her dead. She was a half breed who was super charged with the blood of the favored three daughters of Danu. One of those daughters with origins suspected but unknown.

The waters around her heated and bubbled a bit and a shadowy form began taking shape off to her side. She turned an annoyed look to the newcomer.

"Manannan Mac Lir, as I live and breathe."

"I thought I heard your own name being bandied about around here. Kind of bends the rules of engagement doesn't it, Maeve?"

"Usually you're so observant, looks like I'm actually _behind_ the curve on this one."

He shrugged. "Usually you choose not to try and fight fire with fire. What's so different this time? Family involvement?"

"Oh get bent. You know there's a great deal more at stake here than my familial feelings."

"The crown on your pretty red head?"

"You wanna make a play for it?"

"Fuck, no. I'm just curious as to what our next play is though."

"_Our_ next play?"

"Aye, you know I'm on your side, lass. But don't kill anymore of my crabs, they may be ugly but they're dead useful. Well, not if they're dead though."

"I was wondering, and half hoping that was yours… My warning stands. Don't spy on me, or mine. And crabs? Really?"

"The dolphins get bitchy when I ask them to go up and flop 'round on land."

Maeve couldn't help it, she started laughing. The wind from the South picked up and clouds moved away from the sun.

"Now that's what this town needed, laughter from the warm places."

"You know," she began, "we're making their Troubles worse just by standing here. OUTSIDE of what that prick William is doing."

"Best get on with what you're doing then. What ARE you doing?"

"Leveling the odds. In my favor."

There was a barely perceptible rumble across the ground and a flash of light on the island.

"My teague is here, are you coming along, Mac?"

"The Red Queen prepares to make her stand? Fuck right I'm comin' along."

"No, see, you WANT to be found by Audrey and Nathan. THEY won't hurt you! And all you need to do is talk to them a little bit and just, just figure out what they know and then, all you have to do is THINK about what they know real nice and clear and it's like talking to me. With this very cool little thing in your ear I'll actually be able to hear your thoughts. Better than that Siri on the iPhone, right?"

The blond man smiled charmingly enough but Ezra found it more frightening than the glower of the giant who had jerked him out of the psychiatric hospital.

"Oh, and don't forget, this will make your gift even more powerful, so you won't even have to try that hard."

"It – it's not a gift," Ezra stammered. "It hurts enough as it is." This man, William, was terrifying. Ezra could see that he wanted death and pain and power over those things and he had a plan to get it.

"Ohhh…. You'll be alright! Don't worry. It won't last long. Now, go along, get this one little errand done for me and then you'll be free – even Trouble Free if you really want that – and then I won't have to let the big guy there beat on you for awhile, the little guy does some REALLY amazing hurtful things… You get the picture don't you? Literally, right?! Alright! Go have your best day!"

"The way this guy works, he does have to talk to you, ask you some questions to start to get in your head," Audrey explained to Nathan. "I'm not sure how or if he'll still be able to do that to me, but he's never talked to you before."

"Are you telling me to shut up and look pretty?"

Audrey laughed. "Think you can manage that, Cheekbones?"

"What if William has got a hold of him? His Trouble could be altered now and more invasive or powerful."

"In that case, we need to have a really clear plan going in and keep our thoughts trained on something that would make Colbert feel really awkward."

Maeve's Teague, Kevin greeted her and Manannan with a bow that didn't quite conceal his surprise at finding them together.

"It's alright, old friend, the Old Man of the Sea has spoken his word to me." Kevin nodded and bowed again in Manannan's direction.

Manannan toed the latch on the large chest that Kevin had brought.

"What's in the box, Red?"

"My mother taught me it was rude not to give gifts to those who showed you hospitality. So… gifts."

"Gifts from the great war queen. Wonder what the fuck that would look like."

"It would look like I'm going to kick some ass. Or, you know, that my hosts are going to."

"Bad idea to spread fae blood on this land. Sort of defeats the purpose I set it aside for, does it not? I hope these weapons can carry enough heat."

"In the right hands, they can."

"And do you have the right pair of hands to put them into?"

"I believe I do."

"Will we finally be able to get rid of those damned Formorians?"

"You want extinction; you have to talk to my sister. You want to win a war… I'm your girl."

He was pensive for a moment and the sea grew grim and grey with him, the air chilled. "It's been a long time since this world has had to suffer a war amongst the fae. I don't look forward to what will happen to The Children."

"I don't intend to wage it here. I plan to take the battle right down to them this time."

"Daghda's balls, how are you going to do that?"

"I just need the right door opened."

Jennifer tried tugging on the door to the archive room for what was probably the fiftieth time in the feeble hope that something would be different about it.

"Great, I can open doors that don't even exist, but regular old doors in an archive room totally defeat me. Some faery princess I'm turning out to be." She looked at her watch for perhaps the forty-ninth time. It was five minutes before Noon, even if she got out now she would be late meeting Duke for lunch at the Gull. "Duke is going to freak." And he would likely see the mishap as a reason to increase his watch over her. "Because I can't even save myself from a freaking storage room!" Naturally, her cell phone was on her desk because, who took their cell phone into an archive room? She growled in frustration and kicked the door. Tears stung her eyes. She wished she could go back to this morning when she opened her eyes to find Duke staring down at her like she was the center of the world and the warmth of his touch radiating through her. If she could, she'd drag him down on top of her and not care where Maeve was or what she heard. Mostly she wished she could use her powers to open a damn door.

Duke frowned at the clock. It wasn't even Noon yet but he was worried about Jennifer. Something felt off.

"Are you waiting for someone, Boss?" Karen asked, as she brisked by with a now empty tray. Duke met her eye as he served a coffee across the bar. With most of the down town destroyed and the eateries with it the Gull was picking up the slack. He'd called in what was typically evening staff to compensate, so he was surprised she had time to notice. "I think that's the fifth time you've looked at the clock in almost as many minutes. At least every time I've made a run over here." She tipped the other bartender for her next order of drinks.

"Yeah, Jennifer is supposed to be here for lunch."

"From the looks of things she might be stuck in traffic."

"You're probably right."

"Mike, I wrote no olives in that martini. Duke, you're adorable when you think you're fooling me. I'm a mom of triplets who are now in high school. I know worry. That feeling you get when you KNOW something isn't quite right? I should own the patent on it." She gave him a meaningful nod as she whisked her now corrected order back to her table.

"She has a point, Boss," Mike noted and washed out the martini glass.

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

Mike shrugged. "Of all the people I know; yours and Karen's Spidey Senses are the ones that are always spot on. If you're worried about Jennifer, go find her. We've got this."

"You're giving me some personal time off?"

"Come on, Boss. Haven's going to hell in a hand basket and she works down at the paper right? Always in the thick of it. Hell, I barely know her and I'm worried about her."

"You know, if I catch you and Karen skimming…."

"Yeah, yeah, we're keel hauled or go missing or both. Go get your girlfriend. I'll have a margarita waiting for her."

"Wade was way too soft on you people while I was gone," Duke announced as he left.

Karen smiled at Mike when she came back up to the bar. "I'm glad that asshole is back. His brother was a real douche."

"Vince! Dave!" Jennifer had drawn the conclusion that the Trouble those two had was to be in precisely the wrong place at the worst time. She'd tried finding some tools in the archive room that could help her make good her escape with no luck. Now, it was twenty minutes past Noon, she was hungry and beginning to get a little scared. She knew that someone would come looking for her soon enough but being locked up here was beginning to feel like being locked up in the psych ward, minus the comforts of a cot and chair. "Okay, okay. Stay calm. Maybe I can get this door open after all. Just, just think. No. Don't think. Don't think. Just breathe and… And what?" On the boat she'd heard music in the sunset and sunrise. She had none of that here. And the music had faded any time she tried to tune in to it anyway. "Focus on the door. Just the door." That's when she'd heard the music and that's when she'd been able to let Maeve get through. So she did, she sat on the floor in front of the door and tried to use some of the mind-emptying techniques Duke had tried to teach her the day she finally found the door to open for Audrey. She stared at the door until her eyes watered, until the image softened, until the cracks of light that leaked in around the frame seemed to expand.

And then she heard it, "Jennifer!" It was Duke. He'd come for her. She jumped up and called back to him, "Duke!" She was going to tell him that the door was stuck and she couldn't get out, but the door exploded outward.

Duke panicked at the sound of the explosion and wood splintering. He rushed to the sound, calling out her name and found her in the dust cloud looking amazed, a little scared but completely unharmed. "Are you okay?" His hand instinctively came to rest on neck, her own hand covered his there and with her other arm she embraced him.

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine. The door was stuck. I couldn't open it for what felt like forever. And then I decided to, you know, OPEN it," she used her hands to gesture like a magician. "I think I was just starting to get it when I heard your voice and then…. Boom."

"You're lucky you weren't hurt."

"No, the door went outward from me. It's lucky YOU weren't hurt. Um. Sorry I was late. Got a little locked up, here."

"Uh… That's okay."

"You're not going to use this against me are you?"

"What?"

"I don't want this coming up in the next 'I need you safe, Jennifer' discussion we have. Because technically I _was _safe. Just stuck."

There was a familiar tick in his jaw but Duke nodded his agreement. "You hungry?"

"Starving by now."

"Alright, I saw that Larissa's is open, they usually have some sandwiches at least. You wanna go there?"

"Yes. But can we get it to go? I went into the archive room to get some back ground information on a story I'm working on and since I don't have to worry about getting shut in there now I'd like to catch up with it."

"To go it is, Princess."

Maeve opened the chest to make sure everything was in there.

Manannan gasped. "Holy mother fuckin' rainbows, Maeve," he breathed. "You brought the Spear of Lugh?"

Often referred to as the Spear of Destiny, it was a known god killer. Forged from the contents of a meteorite it was the only such weapon that could be exposed among humans. The great Sword of Macha was the only weapon more powerful but made from an alloy of radioactive metals, it was dangerous to have anywhere near humans. The Sword of Nuada was there too as her own to use, as well as one she had commissioned for Jennifer not long after her birth. But Manannan hadn't yet noticed the most important contents yet, four boxes of the iochshlainte lil. Or maybe he didn't recognize their importance to her. The chest also contained her favorite bows and at least a hundred arrows. Several more knives and a couple of other swords rounded out the arsenal. All of the swords and knives carried enough copper in the alloy to conduct the necessary heat and energy to cauterize a wound and prevent or minimize the spilling of the blood of a Formorian or any fae. An isolated iron band inlaid in the blade ensured death. There was also the tiara she had commissioned for Jennifer.

"My hosts are very, very good and important people."

"My lady," Kevin began. "I was instructed to bring this to you by way of a message." He held out a coffer made of pewter. Inscribed on the top was the glyph for sunset and this night's moon along with a series of numbers Maeve couldn't immediately identify. Frowning she opened the box to find the primary flight feather from a raven's wing. The calling card of Macha. Snapping the box closed she looked again at the inscription on the top and now realized they were coordinates. Macha was commanding a meeting for this evening at sunset.

"Oh. Looks like you're busted." Manannan snickered.

"Well. Fuck," was the only response Maeve could immediately muster.

Manannan peered at the coordinates. "That's not far from where you landed yesterday."

She glanced at him sharply. "Like I'm not going to notice doors opening right the hell above me," he pointed out.

She narrowed her eyes further. "What else did you observe out there, Old Man?"

"Let's just say I was cheering on one of my own." She frowned in puzzlement. "Through his mother's side," Manannan explained. "Why do you think he could hold off Macha's gift better than others?"

"I think it's a pity Wade couldn't bear his strength. And, by the way, I think that watching your progeny mate with my progeny is fucking creepy, weird and frankly gross. Even by OUR standards."

"Don't judge me. And Wade didn't _want_ Duke's strength. As you, yourself pointed out - 'tis a hell of a cross to bear."

She sighed. "Yes. It is a terrible cross to bear. Are you going to give me a lift out here?" She gestured to the coordinates on the box.

"No, no, and fuck no. Last time Macha boarded my ship she fucking cut me, bled me into a damned glass vial and stole my ship. She also took my invisibility cloak and has YET to return it. I'd appreciate it, by the way, if you could get that back from her. And my ship? She left it in the fucking Gobi desert. I don't even want to know how the fuck she got it there but getting it back was two and a half bitches. I'd be happy to give you a hand getting this load back to Crocker's boat but you're going to have to use your fabled powers of persuasion to get him to give you a lift."

"Thank you for that. And more." She gave him a meaningful stare and he bowed.

"I may not be of your bloodline, Your Majesty, but I'm loyal nonetheless. And, for what it's worth, I'm glad to see you taking your place. You get your girl to open that door and you'll have my sword at the ready." He summoned his ship and with a concealing cloud bank brought her to the Rouge. He made an unnecessary show of helping her move from his ship to the other and kissed her hand. When she opened her palm she found one of his whistles on a cord. The Old Man of the Sea had given her the means to summon not only him, but all those under him. She had her army on this side of the veil at the ready.

Once changed into her most human world friendly clothes that allowed her to carry her knives, she took the currency Kevin had acquired for her and, as promised took out a room at the Carpenter's Knot hotel. She persuaded the innkeeper to give her the room at the top of the turret. It gave her the advantage of overlooking the area as well as a way to fly in and out in her eagle's form with relative ease and secrecy. Once settled she also rented a car and marveled at the apparent power of the black colored American Express Kevin had given her. Used in conjunction with a driver's license humans who had no idea that Marianne Dane was, in fact, a goddess and queen treated her rather like one. An hour later at McGuinness's clothing store, Maeve decided that she would, in fact, never leave Albion without one of these. She was fairly skipping out the door in what the shop girl referred to as a 'walk out' ensemble made up of a short, dark copper metallic skirt with a dark green sweater that showed her mid-drift but fit so loose around the shoulders as to slink off of one of them. A pair of open toed 'shoe booties' that matched the skirt and seemed perilously high-heeled finished off the outfit along with a round of 'fashion jewelry.' According to the shop girl the outfit showed off her 'rocking abs' and 'Angie Dickinson' legs, as well as made her eyes 'pop.' She paid for the outfit and several others with their accompanying accessories and was asked to come back soon. She used her time in the dressing room to strap a stiletto onto each thigh and an ear dagger strapped onto each arm. When she was finished she made her way to the archery store and surreptitiously dotted some of her blood on the grinder for the arrow heads. Now, any arrow sharpened there would always find its mark. The store's reputation for arrows with superior accuracy would ensure a great deal of good fortune for the owners for a long time to come.

Finished with those errands, and her purchases locked in the trunk of her car, she turned toward the downtown area of Haven to take in the damage and see what she might be able to do to help. She saw Dwight in command, giving orders and putting his own hands to the effort. She fixed her gaze on him and waited. It wasn't long before he turned to find her and then made his way over. She smiled at him but he didn't quite return it.

"What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see the damage and see how I could help."

"Dressed like that?" In her heels, she actually stood taller than him. And in that skirt, no one else around her would be getting anything done.

"I can change."

"Not in public, I hope."

She made a face at him. "What happened here?"

"A Troubled woman named Doreen Hanscomb yesterday. Her memories have a way of manifesting themselves. Before William, it was pretty mild. Now…."

"They're explosive."

"Yeah."

"Well, luckily, I brought something to help." She reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a white box with a gold colored tree etched on the top. When she opened it, Dwight saw a beautiful but alien looking flower with petals of pearl white and a pale gold center. She used a finger to tap the flower and it seemed to dissolve into a grouping of pearls.

"Those look…."

"The opposite of what William has been using?"

"Yes."

"They are. That is the iochshlainte lile. It can be used to undo whatever William did to her using the bruion tharraingt lile. And if we can get some of these into the water supply, it will protect the rest of the population too."

"Consider it done."

"Duke told me that there were some sample spores of the bruion tharraingt lile in the morgue. I'd like to get a few for analysis. I want to see how using Pryderi's blood on them might have changed them."

"We can do that."

"Great, thanks Dwight. So, where are Audrey and Nathan?"

"Tracking down an escaped mental institute patient."

"No shit?"

"Nope. It's a Troubled guy that Audrey has dealt with before. I figured she had a better chance of figuring out how to find him and arresting him than anyone else."

"What kind of Trouble?"

"A limited amount of mind reading. He has to be able to talk to the person a little to get into how or what they think."

"So Audrey was able to use her immunity to defeat him?"

"Actually she said she used Duke somehow."

"Why would she use Duke if she was immune?"

Dwight's face went blank for a moment.

"Oh, shit," they said in unison.

"Do you know where she is?" Maeve asked. He shook his head. She glanced around wildly for a moment and spotting Larissa's rushed in with Dwight right behind her. They found Duke and Jennifer there, waiting for their order. Jennifer, blessedly was drinking water from a glass.

"Can I see this for a moment?" Maeve asked even as she took the glass.

"I guess. Is that how you normally dress…? Whoa, maybe not do that in public?" Maeve had conjured an image in the glass of Audrey.

Maeve ignored her. "Is this the pier?"

Duke peered into the glass while Dwight and Jennifer tried to make sure that no one was watching. 'Yeah, that's about thirty feet from my boat."

"I need a place where I can change, fast." Maeve gave Duke a meaningful look and he realized she didn't mean her clothes.

"She should be able to use the alley, right Dwight?"

"Is there a back door here?"

"I think it's down that way," Duke offered pointing down a small hallway.

"Cover me, chief?" Dwight was confused but acquiesced. He felt a firm grip on his shoulder and then a dizzying sensation and he realized she was moving at that untraceable speed of hers and pulling him along for the ride.

In the alley, they both made sure no one was around and he stood to block her from anyone. His jaw dropped open when he saw her form begin to blur and melt and a gold eagle take her place. The bird flapped its wings to take off but in the close confines of the alley couldn't quite manage it. He took a deep breath and lowered his arm. Powerful talons gripped and he was pretty sure blood was drawn. He remembered that most falconers wore a leather vambrace to protect them from this. He took her to the open and, hoping that no one noticed the chief of police with an eagle on his arm, basically threw her into the air. It was enough. She flew in the direction of the pier.

"What does she mean by 'change?'" Jennifer asked in a whisper.

"She can, uh, change into an eagle."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, I'll explain later." Their food was handed to them and they rushed out the front door in time to see a gold eagle take flight toward the pier. "Come on," Duke urged as they both watched her fly. From the corner of his eye he saw Dwight come around the corner. "I'll take you back to work. I want to head over to the pier. She nodded, still looking at the sky.

Following their instincts, Audrey and Nathan had decided to go ahead and walk into a trap, hoping that they could turn it around. It was difficult since she had no idea if William had changed Colbert's Trouble and if he had, how it might have been changed. She and Nathan had worked out that William seemed to have a sort of telepathic ability to communicate with or through the orbs given how he was able to summon and control the two men who were working for him. She knew that he used the same orb to mark and create or alter Troubles; and Colbert just seemed like a too specialized Troubled Person to have escaped from the institution under mysterious circumstances. If Maeve's name really did get attention as she had claimed, it was possible that even with Dwight speaking it instead of her, William was on to them. And if that was the case, she wanted to inflict a little damage of her own. So she and Nathan had agreed to think about their newly developed physical relationship. And to think about it really clearly, and in detail. It seemed to be working, Colbert looked a little scared and very awkward. Nathan actually seemed to be enjoying himself. At least, until Maeve appeared suddenly behind Colbert and with a quick twist broke his neck.

The orb that Audrey expected to be there floated out of Colbert's ear and Maeve caught it. "Do you have one of those evidence bags?" She called to Audrey and Nathan.

"You just KILLED that man!" Audrey yelled at her.

Maeve regarded the body at her feet sadly for a moment. "I know. Poor kid was the most unwilling of soldiers." She looked back up at Audrey and Nathan who were both drawing near. She could see Dwight's police car approaching the pier also. "I could see as I drew near that he was… compromised. The spore was causing his neurons to over-fire. He actually had some synapses shutting down, including basic function commands to _his_ body, while attempting to control _yours_. Important things like blinking. And it was a cascading event. Given what was going on I think his brain was trying to open up a telepathic channel…." She sighed. "His human body just wasn't DESIGNED for all of that. So, yes, I killed him. I put him out of his misery and I shut off a spy link to William. I'm NOT human Audrey. I pity him the way you pity any animal that has to be put down. Understand that. Understand also that I am NOT the one who set about to torture him to death in an experiment for my own gain. Now please, evidence bag?"

"Couldn't you have just summoned the thing out of his head?" Nathan asked, pulling one from his jacket pocket and handing it to her.

"I'm not sure what I could do with these things yet and given the way that spore was working on his brain he wasn't going to be coming back from it. You don't get your neurons rearranged easily, you know."

Dwight was standing with them now. "What happened here?"

"I killed him," Maeve responded. She showed him the orb in the evidence bag. "I won't be needing one of the spores from your morgue."

"Did you have to kill him for it?"

"I killed him because it was already killing him. And I don't know if I can control them."

"How was it killing him?"

"Basically by overloading his neuro-pathways." She watched him and Nathan exchange looks.

"The two of you and Jennifer have little to worry about. He didn't manipulate your Troubles and your Troubles aren't related to how the brain works."

"But we have a little to worry about," Nathan urged.

"Like I said, you don't get the insides of your brain rearranged easily."

"Look," Dwight said. "We gotta call this in and get a cover ready."

Duke walked up to join them. "Whoa. What happened?"

"Uh, Maeve killed him," Audrey answered. "William put one of those orbs in his head and she could see that it was killing him while providing some kind of link to William."

"Did anyone see?" Duke asked.

"Hopefully not."

"I'm pretty sure most of the people are in or around the down town area," Audrey offered.

Duke turned to Maeve. "Did you notice anyone when you were… coming in?"

"No." She turned to Dwight. "Are you going to try to arrest me?"

"_Could_ I arrest you?'

Maeve snorted in derision. "Even if you had iron manacles, you couldn't get them out and on me fast enough. Call it in, Chief. If an eyewitness steps up they can be handled. WITHOUT killing them!" She clarified at their horrified expressions.

"Duke, a word with you, please?" She inclined her head toward his boat.

He agreed and they boarded the _Rouge_.

"Nice outfit," he quipped.

"Thanks. I was assured it was best suited to my rocking abs, 'Angie Dickinson' legs and that my eyes would pop. The colloquialisms of this time and place are fun, like a jigsaw puzzle of several different eras and cultures made to fit together. And yes, I paid for it." She pulled the credit card from underneath the ear dagger on her arm. "These are awesome. If you don't have one, I seriously recommend getting one. I bet Jennifer would love it."

"How the hell did you get one of those?"

"My teague gave it to me."

"What? How? Do you even know how those work?"

"From what I have gathered recently, most humans don't know how these work, why should I?" She was toying with him now, she couldn't help it. It was fun. She was reasonably sure few people got the drop on Duke Crocker. Which made him ideal for her daughter.

He sighed. "How does your teague get one of those for you?"

"Now, to be honest, I don't know. But only because I don't concern myself with it. That's part of what they do, help make sure that our crossings here are smooth and therefore well concealed. Byron Howard, for instance…."

"Is Rhiannon's Teague."

"Sort of. His loyalty is questionable as he is more assigned to her by a council of high ranking fae. MY teague's loyalty to me is unassailable."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Other than a couple of thousand years? I have shown HIM loyalty. You know how that works."

Duke nodded. "So what did you want to talk about?"

She pointed to the box sitting on one of the hatches. He picked it up and recognized the coordinates right away.

"The other engravings refer to sunset, tonight. Would you please take me there?"

"You could buy your own boat."

"I probably could. But then I'd have to figure out what the hell to do with it. Hire a human to pilot it and possibly kill them for being untrustworthy."

"I'm not exactly running a charter cruise here."

"No, but if you did charter to me I could certainly make it worth your while. I'm pretty sure I have a nice cash advance with this card."

"We might check that out. What I actually want from you though is something money can't buy."

"Go on."

"Jennifer and I had a fight this morning." Maeve's eyes narrowed. "She's refusing to take the danger she's in seriously because she feels like she can't do anything about it anyway. She doesn't want to, as she puts it, live in fear."

Maeve nodded in understanding. "She is striving to regain some normalcy, Duke. Surely you can understand that."

"I do. But she's NOT normal and nothing about this situation is normal. I promised her that I would teach her how to fight, and shoot. And that we would start tonight."

"You want me to do that while you handle the ship."

"I figure the Celtic goddess of war probably has more to teach than I do." She smiled. "So do we have a deal?"

She placed her fist over heart. "We do. Now what time does Jennifer get off work?"

"According to the Brothers Teague she's salary so… any time she wants. She was working on a story earlier…" He paused when he realized Maeve would want to know this. "She was supposed to meet me at the Gull for lunch."

"But you were at that bakery, Larissa's."

"Yes, because she was late getting to the Gull and I figured something was wrong and I was right. She was stuck in the archive room at the Herald, the door jammed on her."

"It's a good thing then that you followed your instinct."

"Yeah, but here's the thing, she got the door open just as I got there."

"That's an amusing human anecdote about coincidences."

"No, I mean, she got the door to open the same way she got the door to open for you, and for Audrey."

"She used her power with focus and intent. Good."

"The door exploded."

"Toward her or away from her?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes, for various reasons."

"Away from her." Maeve didn't seem inclined to clarify why it mattered any more than the obvious reason, she only nodded.

"So what's so important out to sea?"

"I have an appointment to make out there. I think I'm going to need Jennifer to open the door again."

"Is that all she is to you? Some door between worlds?"

"Certainly not. And are you certain you want to start talking about what Jennifer is to either one of us? Because I'm quite certain that…."

"Relax, I'm just worried about the impact all of this is having on her. She's been…. Amazing at handling the Troubles since she got here. But it's been just one thing after another. It's always like that here. And I just feel like…."

"You DO feel guilty pulling her out of Boston, don't you?"

He sighed. "She may have thought she was crazy there and didn't like that she had to be medicated but, at least with the medication, she was normal. And safe."

"That's very noble of you Duke, considering the void that would be left in your own life."

"Like you said, I could have let her go back."

"And yet, you couldn't."

"What did you mean by that last night? That she was irresistible here?"

"Think about it all, Duke. Think about the fairy tales you know from childhood. Think about Audrey and how people react to her. All the world either wants to be the magical princess - or they want to possess her in some fashion. There is a Latin phrase that I find quite fitting: Lux desidirium universitatis."

"Light is the desire of the universe," Duke translated.

"For someone, for several someones, living with a great deal of darkness and living in isolation; a being with the power to light the dark and open closed doors is…."

"Irresistible."

"Even if they don't actually KNOW the manifestation of her power, people can sense it." She let Duke ponder the meaning of that for a moment before altering the subject. "If I'm going to start teaching Jennifer how to fight I'm going to need something from my hotel room." He looked surprised. "Yes, I've been a busy Queen Bee today, hotel room, shopping, taking care of the Bodarrins, taking down spies… A queens work is never done."

"Taking care of the Bodarrins?"

"The owners of the archery store? I put some blood on their arrow grinders. My blood. It will ensure accuracy for every arrow made or sharpened there. Reputation is more precious than gold."

"Nice work."

"I'm really a benevolent queen."

"But you're not OUR queen."

"Not in the strictest sense, no. But last night surely taught you that what I and my people do influences events here. Now, I left my car down town. Can you give me a lift?"

"Your car?"

"I rented one. Thought it might come in handy."

Ten minutes later Duke was gawking at a black Maserati Quattroporte GTS. "They let you just RENT one of these?!"

"That black credit card is an excellent amplifier to my powers of persuasion."

"You gotta let me drive this thing."

"I signed an agreement with them that I would not and I do uphold my agreements. Now, we need to hurry. Sunset isn't very far off and I still need to get to the Carpenter's Knot hotel and back." She noticed Duke give her an uneasy sideways look at that. "It's a good tactical position for me." She wondered briefly what bad memories he had of the place as she got in the car and drove away.

Duke pulled up at the Haven Herald and cursed to himself the presence of the Teague brothers. They had the absolute worst timing. He also wondered how Jennifer had explained the broken door to them. That question was answered as he walked in.

"You mean you kicked the door hard enough to shatter it?" Vince obviously wasn't buying it but he didn't seem inclined to press her very hard either.

"Well, you know, lots of time in ballet and gymnastics."

"That doesn't seem like a skirt that you would be able to do that in." Maybe Vince was going to press this issue.

"That's why I can't really show you how it's done, boys."

Duke revealed his presence with a laugh. "That's my girl." Jennifer turned toward him and while she was smiling she looked a little relieved.

"Duke, what are you doing here?" David asked.

Duke ignored him, "Can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked Jennifer.

She caught his meaning and excused the two of them, taking him outside to get away from the brothers.

"Vince, you don't believe she kicked that door down, do you?"

"Not for a second."

"She's using those powers you mentioned, isn't she? That's good, isn't it?"

"I certainly hope so."

"Duke, what's going on?"

"How soon can you get out of here?"

"I'm almost finished with my story, I just need to get it to the copy editor. Why?"

He lowered his voice and stood near enough so that only she could hear. "It's Maeve. She needs us to take her back out to sea and for you to open a door for her again."

"Is she leaving already?" Jennifer spoke in a responding whisper.

"She just says she has an appointment to keep."

"That sounds like someone else is coming in. I thought they were supposed to stay AWAY from here."

"Maybe that's why we're heading out. We need to be there by sunset."

"That won't be a problem. I can finish here by 4:00 easy."

"Okay."

"Want me to grab dinner to go? Thai food?"

"Sounds good." He leaned in to kiss her goodbye.

"Oh, Duke. Hey… There's this guy that's been kind of lurking around all day. Right over there." She used her eyes to try to point out the plainclothes that Dwight had assigned to her.

"You want me to, ah, talk to him? Is he freaking you out?"

"He's not freaking me out, not really, so no. I was thinking that he might be some kind of hired P.I. or a plainclothes officer following me. Didn't you notice him at Larissa's?"

Duke had, in fact noticed him at Larissa's. As could be expected, a small town police force didn't have a guy that was very good at not being seen. Not a hell of a lot of call for undercover work here.

"Could be, I guess. I'd go with plainclothes unless you know someone who would hire a P.I."

"Other than you? No. And I figure you'd be the one lurking."

"And if I was, you wouldn't have made me, Bright Eyes."

"I might have, before I realized who it was, I could tell someone had been watching me… You know that feeling you get? Kind of creepy really. Did you get Dwight to have me tailed?" He was silent just a moment too long. "Duke…" She tugged on the whistle he wore around his neck.

"Before I did, Maeve and Audrey asked him to."

"Are you serious?" She asked, furiously.

"We're worried about you…"

"I know I'm kind of little but I am not, in fact, a child. I can actually handle myself. You know, I managed to survive big city Boston…"

"Haven's not Boston and the things that make it dangerous for you and everyone else just aren't the same."

"That cop could have been helping with the clean up today, Duke."

"Instead, he got the closest thing to vacation duty available right now: following a pretty woman around town."

"Suddenly you're okay with strange men following me around town?" She was smiling so he knew it was going to be alright.

"Like that guy stands a chance." He pulled her in his arms for another kiss.

"I wonder what he'd do if I started screaming for help…?"

"Get his ass kicked for trying to get between us," Duke murmured before kissing her. Her lips were smiling even as they softened when she kissed him back. "See you around 4:30 then?"

"I'll keep my cell phone on me just in case another door gets stuck." She winked and went back to work.

William settled deeper into the shadows around the corner from the Herald. He frowned, something about Duke made a distortion in the sound, it was harder to eavesdrop on them than it should have been. Or maybe the sound distortion was coming from Jennifer, he couldn't tell for certain. Vince Teague, he knew, carried an innate ability to distort and disguise and the Haven Herald was built lined with iron to interfere with his powers. But he had managed to glean enough information to know that Jennifer could feel someone watching her but wasn't quite developed enough to truly identify the origin. Better information yet was that these two were plainly each other's strength, and therefore, could be exploited as a weakness.

By the time Duke finished up at the Gull and got back to the _Rouge_, Maeve was there, sitting on top of the pilot house and drinking a bottle of wine. He wondered if, despite her name, she ever did drink enough to get drunk. She'd changed into a yoga suit in preparation for Jennifer's training and she looked as human and relaxed as he supposed someone like her could be.

"Jennifer should be here in a couple of minutes. You know, she made that plainclothes officer today."

Maeve actually looked pleased or proud. "Of course she did. Is she angry?"

"I think she's okay with it. Just annoyed. She reminded me for a second time today that she's not a child."

"I think, for someone as petite as Jennifer, particularly a woman in a culture that is as predatory as yours, living under threat is such a constant that it is no longer felt, even when the nature of the threat changes. On the one hand it is nice to finally feel safe, on the other you suddenly learn that safety has its own confinements. You may not be a predator yourself but you know how they think and you _are_ a protector. So you see her in those same terms. She wants you to see her as she sees herself. And right now, she's having some trouble getting a grip on that self perception because it's been over hauled a lot lately. Learning to use her powers and fight will be good for the both of you."

Duke nodded his agreement. Maeve was increasingly proving herself to be a source of illumination and was no longer tight lipped about much of anything. He wondered if it had something to do with gathering her things from her teague.

"You want to tell me who we're meeting out there?"

"My sister. My _other_ sister."

"Is that a good idea? You didn't exactly portray her as Susie Sunshine."

"It's a worse idea to ignore her summons - even for me. And I didn't portray her as Susie Sunshine because she's not, she's Deadly Destruction. Which is the main reason why it's a bad idea to ignore her. If she's entering the human plane, it's important. And she brings support. In her own way. Don't worry Duke, she won't hurt Jennifer and for Jennifer's sake she won't harm you. Besides, you're a descendant of hers so she wouldn't want to. I've taken the liberty of asking Audrey and Nathan to come."

"So a nice family reunion. I thought it was a bad idea for so many of you to be around here."

"That's probably the reason she wants to meet at sea."

She stood and from her vantage point could see Jennifer's car approach. She pointed it out to Duke and then stepped off the top of the house as casually as she might a street curb. Her stride didn't break at all when she landed. Duke shook his head, Jennifer was right, if more of Maeve's people showed up, what kind of chance did they have against them? He also noticed that she was now wearing a whistle on a cord around her neck similar to his own. Only hers was a bright silver with etchings on it he couldn't quite make out.

He helped Jennifer with the take out bags and they went below deck to eat. Maeve stayed topside to wait for Audrey and Nathan.

"So Maeve says that _Macha_ is the one she has an appointment with?" Jennifer said in a hushed tone. "I don't know whether to be excited or scared."

"I'm leaning more toward the uneasy side, myself." Duke answered.

"Why is that?"

"Something is just weird about the timing, I guess. I don't know."

"Hey, off the subject, but I'm not really keen on my first self defense lessons being in front of an audience."

Duke smiled. "Don't worry, I'll hustle Nathan and Audrey down here. They'll get it. We all had to start learning some time. Though to be fair, I imagine we ALL want to see what Maeve has to teach."

She brightened at that. "I know right? Who gets to say they trained under an actual war goddess?" She pointed to herself with her chopsticks. "This girl right here."

Duke laughed with her. "So you're excited about this, over all?"

"Yeah. I mean, I've taken self defense courses before. You know, the kind that last for a couple of weeks and you mostly learn how to kick them in the knees and elbow them, and scream nine one one. I'm pretty sure this is going to be very different. I just hope she doesn't insist on teaching me wax on, wax off, first. By the way, do you know what Maeve picked up from the island?"

"There's a chest in the chartroom she's waiting to show us after we leave."

"I bet it has weapons."

"I bet she has at least one of those iochschlainte liles in there."

Jennifer looked at him with a mixture of admiration and envy. "You said that perfectly! Do you know Gaelic?"

"I've been around enough Irish sailors to get comfortable with it, yeah."

"THAT is what you're going to be teaching me too, then."

He smirked at her. "You just have to be a cunning linguist."

She actually blushed a little. "I guess I'll have a good teacher then."

The door opened and Audrey and Nathan called out their arrival. Maeve followed behind them.

"Jennifer? If you're finished eating and you're not too full, you want to change clothes and join me on deck?"

"Be right there, sensei."

When Jennifer went back to change clothes Audrey turned a questioning glance to Duke.

"To make up for being an idiot this morning, I offered Jennifer some self defense lessons. Since Maeve needs me to pilot the boat out to her appointment, she is going to be doing the teaching. At least this afternoon anyway."

"I'd love to see that," Nathan commented. Earning a reprising look from and Audrey. "What? She's a supposed war goddess. I bet she'd make Xena look kind of lame by comparison."

"Well, Jennifer, on the other hand does NOT want an audience. So you think you two could occupy yourselves down here for an hour or so? And please, please, please, don't do anything to let on if you're going to be doing something…" He trailed off with waving his hand in the air as he finished.

"What Duke means," Jennifer clarified as she came out of her room, dressed in a pair of leggings and a long sleeved cotton knit shirt. "Is no screwing in his bed. And if you do it in mine, change the sheets. And it would still be creepy to do it in Wade's." Three jaws dropped but she ignored them and stood on tiptoe to kiss Duke's cheek before going up top.

"Yeah," Duke assented after a moment. "What Jen said. I'm going to go and get us out of here. If you're hungry you can eat." He gestured toward the remaining food and followed Jennifer.

Nathan grabbed a box of curried shrimp and started eating. "So what do you think about meeting your other sister?"

"I hardly know what to think about most of this, yet. Earlier I saw Maeve snap a guy's neck like it was toothpick and show NO remorse at all. Macha, by the sound of it, is even _more_…." She couldn't quite find the word.

"Inhuman?" Nathan offered.

"Yeah, something like that. And yet supposedly she and I are really tight, in my other life anyway. A life, I just can't remember."

"It actually makes a weird sort of sense that you and this Macha would be so close. As Rhiannon you seem to sort of represent the beginning of, or the renewal of life. Macha sounds like she would represent the end of life."

Audrey seemed to take this in. "I just wish I could remember these things. Maybe I know more than Maeve and can help. If I made the lily that can help to heal or ease troubles, and if I could remember how I did it, maybe I could actually improve upon it."

"I don't know," Nathan began. "Maeve thinks that William altered the trouble making lily using the blood of your son. Sounds like you'd have to do some damage to yet another fae to make any alterations or so called improvements on the healing one. You really willing to do that?"

Audrey sighed. "No. I guess I'm not."

"Like you told me, we spend our lives doing impossible things so that people DON'T have to die. I think we can do a lot more without hurting or killing people."

"Too bad we couldn't save Colbert."

Nathan nodded. "You think Maeve's right about that? That the damage was permanent and would only get worse?"

"I don't know. I hope it's not the case for you, Dwight and Jennifer. I don't know how long Colbert had that thing in his head though. The three of you had it for maybe two or three hours. Do you think… do you _feel_ like it's done any damage? That it was permanent?"

"Well I still don't trust William," he joked. Audrey laughed. "And I still don't like the idea of anyone else kissing you or much of anything else. So I'm afraid so, that it's permanent damage." They smiled at each other for a moment before sharing a kiss. Before it could get to heated Audrey backed off. "Yeah," Nathan agreed. "Still too weird. Jennifer totally ruined it."

Audrey laughed. "I know a way to get even."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. Did you know Duke has secret passage ways in here?"

"I'm not surprised."

"There is one that leads right up to the pilot house. Wanna try it? If Duke can fit, I bet you can."

"Up to the pilot house. Where Duke is?"

"Oh come on, he can't stay mad at us and Jennifer doesn't have to know until after and then she'll see that we won't mock her."

Nathan consented and followed her up. Duke regarded them as a pair of errant children.

"Really you two? Really? You expect me to let this slide?"

"Yes," Audrey asserted. "We tried but couldn't bring ourselves to have sex so we got bored and decided to come up here. Come on, we won't even watch Jennifer. We'll just bug the shit out of you."

He rolled his eyes. "So did Maeve 'cop knock' your door this morning?"

Nathan choked. "You KNEW she was going to do that?"

"How many couples do you think you've interrupted before, Nathan?"

"Fair enough," Nathan responded. "I've actually been trying to figure out if she went by Dwight's to ask protection for Jennifer before or after."

"I don't know if Dwight knew it or not at the time, but she actually can turn into an eagle. You guys know that most of the fae are known to be shape shifters, right?"

They both shook their heads no. "But I did notice an eagle in the sky shortly before Maeve popped up behind Colbert and killed him," Nathan said. He watched the lesson unfolding on deck with the other two for a bit. Maeve seemed to be taking Jennifer through some moves that he vaguely recognized as kung fu "How strong is she?" He asked, meaning Maeve.

"I don't know," Duke responded. "And that's what worries me. People coming over from her world and an unknown quantity of them want to kill Jennifer. I don't know how to protect her from that."

"You said you were an idiot this morning," Audrey repeated. "What happened?"

Duke gave a brief and not a very complete run down of the morning's confrontation. It was enough for them to understand why Jennifer had been upset.

"She seems over it now," Audrey pointed out. "She's looking pretty good out there too."

"Yeah," Duke said softly. Audrey smiled at the expression of pride on his face. "Did you know she's a dancer? Took quite a bit of gymnastics too."

A sly smile crept across the face of both of them. "And I guess the Tiny Dancer jokes are very, very done." He said with mock sternness. Nathan nodded while Audrey snickered.

"Got it. No asking her to hold us closer," she promised.

He cast her a withering glance. "We're here. Just in time, too."

"So now what do we do?" Audrey asked.

"Well, you two can go back downstairs so that Jennifer doesn't feel like she's being spied on non-stop. I'll let them know we've arrived and drop anchor. Don't worry, one of us will come and get you."

"I think Jennifer is already getting ready," Audrey pointed out.

She was. She and Maeve had both noticed the position of the sun and after the workout Jennifer felt focused and calm. She gazed out at the horizon, waiting for the door to show itself to her. Listening for the familiar sounds. Waiting for that now familiar shifting feeling on the inside. She felt, rather than saw Duke emerge from the bridge and Nathan and Audrey after. And though she realized that meant they had used the secret passage way and had therefore probably been watching her for some time, she didn't care right now. With Maeve, her mother, standing a few feet behind her, she prepared to open the way for her other aunt.

Duke stood close to Maeve. "You sure she can do this?"

"Absolutely," the woman answered.

"I'm, uh, not going to pull your sister out of the water, am I?"

"If that was the case, I'd do the pulling. And there won't be a miss this time. Jennifer is ready and now has some experience, and Macha is prepared. She's waiting…. Get ready."

As the sun appeared to strike the water on the horizon there was a rumbling like thunder, a flash of white light that cause them all to flinch and close their eyes.

When Duke could see again he saw a form appear to fall from the sky and land on his boat. A female figure with pale blonde hair, draped in a cloak of what looked like raven feathers crouched in a landing position. For long seconds all that could be seen of her was the top of her head and a pair of hands that didn't look human. They looked like Maeve's had last night when she had dropped her human guise. From that position he could see a long, strange metal box strapped to her back. She lifted her head and he was able to make out a pair of silver eyes gleaming through the blonde tresses before affirming that she was in fact, not using any kind of human glamour at all. If Maeve had appeared disturbing but still beautiful in her natural form, Macha was terrifying. The fine scales that could almost pass for glitter surrounding her eyes were metallic looking, ranging from dark pewter to light silver. A hint of purple could be seen in them. She didn't have to bare her fangs, they actually protruded from her mouth. She shook out her long blonde locks and he could see the pointed ears. Jennifer gasped. Duke could only imagine what Nathan and Audrey were thinking.

"Macha," Maeve said in an admonishing tone. "You're scaring them."

Macha sneered in response. "I? I should scare them. Anything mortal should fear me. And yet, I pose no real threat to these four. In fact, I would be a powerful ally to them all. Except…." Her gaze settled on Duke. "There is a wrong that needs to be set right." In her hand she clutched a vial consisting of a thick, dark blue liquid on the bottom and a lighter blue on the top. She gave it a quick shake and withdrew something from within her feathery cloak.

"Oh…" Maeve breathed in sudden understanding and got ready for what she knew was coming.

Because she was headed directly for him, Duke was able to track the movement a little better than Nathan, Audrey and Jennifer. But he still couldn't brace himself against the onslaught. Macha charged him. He was able to just make out that what she had drawn from her cloak was a strange thin knife before she stabbed him in the heart. He heard Jennifer screaming and saw Maeve move to block her, as well as Nathan and Audrey from trying to stop Macha or get to him before he lost consciousness.

Really, it was over before the humans could react. Macha had Duke pinned down and straddle him, and with the hollow dagger in his heart poured the mixed blood in. It was a shitty way to do it, but there was no guarantee that Duke would willingly take back that power. And now she knew why Macha had stolen some of Mac Lir's blood. She was adding it to her own, using Manannan's strength to bolster Duke. Or the power of the cursed gift she was forcing on him, maybe both. Manannan's healing power would come in handy now too. As well as the combined efforts of Jennifer and Audrey. She sighed. This was going to take a lot of explaining.

The deed done, Macha got off him. She rested her hand on his forehead and spared a glance at where Maeve was restraining the remaining three and nodded. Maeve let them go and they rushed to him, Jennifer getting there first. Amusingly, Jennifer tried to push Macha away for a moment. She'd might as well have tried to push a mountain. Macha looked into Jennifer's eyes and held her gaze. "Heal him." She looked up to Audrey. "Help her heal him." She looked to Nathan and said nothing to him, but only nodded. He took his place next to Audrey, coming to kneel down by his friend.

Audrey and Jennifer knelt at opposite sides of Duke and reached for the wound in his chest. Macha's gaze returned to Jennifer and her expression was speculative. Faster than Maeve could guess or react, Macha had drawn a stiletto and cut Jennifer's hand, and then pressed it down on top of the wound; forcing a blood bond between the two of them. Maeve closed her eyes in weary resignation. Macha then grasped Audrey's hand pressed it on top of Jennifer's.

The golden glow they created surged and they both seemed pained and surprised by it. Long after it would have been too warm for them to otherwise bear they held their hands in place. Jennifer was beginning to despair when Duke breathed in a choked and ragged breath and opened his eyes. They were silver. Nathan and Audrey backed away, with Nathan trying to grab Jennifer and pull her with them to safety. Jennifer pulled herself from his grasp with a little help from Macha who still grasped her hand. Duke roared with the horrible, intense mixture of agony and ecstasy that Macha's actions had just inflicted on him and Maeve heard an undertone that shouldn't have been there.

"What have you done, Macha?"

Macha didn't answer for a long moment. She kept one hand on Duke's forehead and the action seemed to restrain him as he was otherwise writhing in what appeared to be agony on the deck. Jennifer kept one hand on his heart and pulled the other one away from Macha to try to help hold onto Duke, holding his hand to her heart she seemed to just be waiting for it to pass.

"I've made sure my only living descendant has a choice, Maeve. The same choice you seek to ensure for your own." Duke quieted a little bit and she stood, leaving him in Jennifer's care. "But I will not tolerate assassination attempts. I have bestowed god-hood."

Author's note: Chapter 8 seemed like the one that just wouldn't close itself out. It was relatively easy to write, it just took a lot of time to put it together. I had a specific design with this chapter and this point of the story line. I blame the characters. They were really crowding for space here. Nathan and Audrey finally started talking to me, though not very much. I think they're still sore at me for abandoning them for the Dukifer ship. Can't help it, Duke and Jen are just too… how do you put it? Asdfghjkl And not even I was really prepared for all that Macha had in mind.


	9. Chapter 9

Stay

Chapter 9

Author's note: Brighid is commonly pronounced "Bridget" but the Celts pronounced it more like "breed." Typically considered as a single female goddess there are also references to her a triple goddess. Regardless, the sphere of influence is fire as in a light or the fire of the hearth. She or they also have dominion over thresholds and metal working. In contrast to a Morrigu which is likewise considered both a single and triple aspect goddess, a Brighid would have more associations with the beginning/renewal or fullness of life whereas a Morrigu's association would be more with war and death. Jennifer plainly takes more after her aunt Rhiannon and mother Maeve (who could be associated with the fullness of life) than she does her death and destruction dealing aunt Macha.

Also: Silver Eyed Smut as mentioned on tumblr. And it was hard to write. Duke is NOT okay with the possibility of scaring or hurting Jennifer and she is not okay with anything Duke is not okay with. I hope I got it right. Or, failing that, I hope you enjoy it. It felt right to close the chapter there and I'm already working on Chapter 10.

* * *

Long moments later, Duke lay still on the deck of his ship. He seemed only half conscious but he was breathing steadily now. His eyes, when he opened them, were still silver though. Maeve watched as Audrey and Nathan began to recover themselves. Jennifer was caressing his face and as Duke recovered; his focus was locking in on her.

"Duke?" She whispered. "Please be okay, please come back to me."

Nathan's temper was beginning to kick in and so was Audrey's. It was Audrey who first confronted Macha, she felt somewhat safe in the bond that she had as Rhiannon with the being who had just…. "What the HELL did you do to him?!" She growled at Macha.

"I gave him my blood. Mine and also the blood of Manannan Mac Lir, another ancestor of his. He is stronger now than he ever was."

Nathan's fury overloaded. He'd seen what Duke's Trouble did to him. He knew how Duke dreaded the rush. He knew also that Duke was no stranger to battling an addiction and that Macha had just given him something akin to an overdose. He rose to face her. "What gives you the right to do this to him? To do it like that?"

Maeve had moved to intercede before Nathan finished, ready to pull him from Macha's retribution should there be one. Luckily, Macha only looked mildly amused and somewhat pleased.

"As I said. He is my only living descendant. He is also a willing soldier in a war, as would be expected from one of my lineage. Quite importantly, my MIGHT gives me the right."

"I don't care who you are," Jennifer snapped from her place at Duke's side. "NOTHING gave you the right to do this to him. He isn't some soldier in your war. And he hated his Trouble. What it did to him, his brother and everyone in his family. Even after he destroyed it by killing his brother he didn't feel free from his family's legacy. Jack and Dwight and a few others may think that it was important for Duke to carry this but no one has ever bothered to fucking ASK him! No one asked him how he might feel about killing people or how he was able to compare it to a heroine addiction. He was just supposed to murder someone when someone else thought it might be a good idea. And now, what have you done? Basically overdosed him?" She looked to Maeve, "with allies like this, who needs enemies?"

Audrey found herself a little worried that Macha might strike this time. She was also trying to figure if she had ever heard Jennifer swear before. Apparently Nathan had the same concern about Macha striking, because he drew his gun on her. Macha simply laughed. "You have all the fire I would expect from this one's offspring." She pointed at Maeve.

Jennifer leapt to her feet. "Is this FUNNY to you?" Audrey followed her up, ready to back her.

"Jennifer," Duke's voice was weak. "Don't."

"I am not human, child."

"That doesn't excuse you from being _inhumane!"_

Maeve's jaw actually dropped and she thought she saw Macha's face registering some surprise before she smoothed her features back into place. "Enough," she announced and after reaching into her cloak yet again she tossed a silvery powder into the air.

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Maeve muttered as it put the humans to sleep. She dropped her human masking. "What the HELL, Macha? Have you lost your fucking mind? You can't be experimenting with your blood mix on humans! Especially not THIS one!" She gestured at Duke and sighed. "How long are they going to be out?"

"A couple of hours at least. It varies. Duke needs his rest."

"Oh. Oh. No shit? Really? I mean, getting stabbed in the heart and having the blood of two god like beings shoved into him is going to make him feel a little sleepy?"

"You are over reacting. And not at all thinking strategically."

"It's going to be awhile before I find the grand strategy in alienating my four key players. Well, they can't stay the night out here. Now open that door over there so I can take them downstairs. And you WILL be helping me move them." She lifted up Duke first feeling the most pity for him.

"I have never failed to help you to move the bodies, Maeve."

"They'd better not be dead."

"I would never harm them."

"We need to seriously update your dictionary."

They settled the four friends into their respective beds and as Macha settled Nathan in close to Audrey she smiled.

"I like this Nathan fellow," she told Maeve. "I like his bravery and loyalty. He is also very attractive."

Maeve rolled her eyes as she settled Jennifer in, next to Duke. "Does anyone know you're here?" She asked Macha.

"It is my understanding that Manannan does. Arianrhod, I am sure knows that I am here."

"Is this what you came to do?"

"Among other things. I thought I might come and point out what should be obvious to you also."

"Such as?"

"She is not coming back."

"Who?"

"Suile Gaela."

Maeve sighed and turned to find Macha in the doorway to Duke's cabin. "You forced a blood bond on them."

"Merely a physical expression of what was already happening. She runs into his arms, Maeve."

"What have you seen, Macha?"

Macha turned and headed back toward the deck, over her shoulder she answered, "I saw him carry her away from a storm. I saw him act as shield and weapon for her. I saw her will bend to his…"

"Enough, Macha." Maeve followed her and they faced off.

"No, I think not. I saw her cry in his arms because she unwittingly opened a door to let you cross and she fears the implications. In fact, I saw him absorb every fear she has and destroy it before her eyes. I also saw their fight." Maeve looked at her curiously. "If any man had handled me that way he would be dust on the floor, but Jennifer ran to his arms right after."

"What do you mean? What did he do?"

"He demonstrated her helplessness to her. Most infuriating. You can see for yourself. You WILL see for yourself Maeve, in the coming days she will have plenty of occasion to seek him out. And I have made sure he has the strength to do what needs done. And William had no idea that I could or would."

"That strength is its own burden, Macha. I doubt you even know all the side effects involved."

Macha shrugged. "Whatever they may be, they can be dealt with. He can rely on the healing powers of both Suile Gaela and Rhiannon. At least until I destroy the bond between Rhiannon and William."

"Do you even care what he's going to go through? Just a little?"

"I care about what he IS, Maeve. At least now. And it is time you pay attention to what your daughter truly is. William threatens our realm and your rule, Maeve. He attempts to use our more tender hearted sister to exploit a perceived weakness. OUR offspring, as might be expected, can help to defeat him. We could finally break the link between him and Rhiannon. I could finally destroy him. And then drive the Formorians to extinction. Rhiannon will choose this mortal life as Audrey Parker and live it out with Nathan there. Duke and Jennifer will be able to do as they please."

Maeve narrowed her eyes on her. "You can't believe everything you see on Arianrhod's wheel, Macha. The future is always in flux. That's why Arianrhod's sanity is thready at best. You can't be certain that Duke is going to wake up and roll with this like it's another one of the usual punches. You STABBED him in the heart - in front of his lover and his best friends - you then proceeded to basically re-Trouble him and then pronounced him a soldier. Humans have movies about that kind of shit and people like you are the villains."

"This is not one of their movies."

"You're refusing to get my point here. If they don't trust us they will act on their own. They won't follow orders or advice. And Suile Gaela had a point, NO ONE has ever asked Duke about any of this. In fact, every single one of your sons have seen this as an AFFLICTION…"

"Are you going to pretend that you, yourself, saw no advantage to us in such a power being wielded? Not only have my descendants destroyed some of the worst of the Troubles, but THIS one has been able to see the danger of the addiction of power and resist the urge to kill when it was unwarranted…."

"That may be only because of Manannan's blood line."

"Which is why I made certain to make an opportunity to take some of his for this purpose."

"When did you do that by the way?"

Macha held her silence.

"She did it shortly after the lad was born." Manannan announced, pulling himself up on board.

Maeve rolled her eyes, Duke was going to be so pissed off when he got up. "Macha, what do you know?"

"What you should know by now. What you should be able to put together. THINK Maeve. The timing of the birth of your daughter, of THIS particular Crocker, of Nathan _Hansen_ Wuornos? And all of them in time to cluster around Rhiannon as she chooses an identity that you said was tailor made for a mortal to help aid the Troubled Children. The only way the stars could align any better is if one of them was a born Brighid, and if you would - as the humans put it - 'pull your head out of your ass' you might notice that is _exactly_ what Suile Gaela is!"

Maeve ran her hand through her hair. "I've considered it. But her father is human…."

"Her father had a fae ancestor somewhere in his lineage," Manannan pointed out.

"That wouldn't, _shouldn't_ be enough…"

"Maeve," Macha snapped, "it took the blood of two additional goddesses to ensure her delivery, blood that she still carries, the only thing that should surprise you is that she is not a Morrigu."

"And yet you tell me she will turn her back on Albion; that her choice will always be to run into the arms of Duke Crocker. Which means, of course, that you know that he will choose to stay here despite the god-hood you say you have conferred on him?"

"I did not give him immortality. Not even _I _would do that without talking it over with him first."

"How can Jennifer be a Brighid when she's mortal, Macha?"

Macha seemed to consider it for a moment. "Honestly, Maeve, other than simply saying that she is human enough, I do not know. The only other option is choice. For now, at least, she chooses that option. And I have seen her make that choice over and over again."

"How long were you on Arianrhod's Wheel, Macha?" Maeve had heard that part of Macha's 'initiation' into the tribe of the Danaan had required her to be subjected to the Wheel of Time. To stare into the void and experience the bend and twist of time. Arianrhod was rarely lucid herself, sanity being the sacrifice for being able to see past, present and all the possible futures at the same time. If Macha had been subjected to that it might explain why she was so cold hearted sometimes.

Macha cast her a speculative stare. "Longer than you were on fire. Tell me, did it ever occur to you to ask where they got an ember that could create a flame that could grow to encompass _you_?"

"I was a little busy trying to hide my pregnancy and keep my child alive as well as myself. I forgot to ask. So again; what do you know, Macha?"

"I know that there is a traitor in our midst and that they are powerful enough to conceal themselves from even me. Which means that they have help."

Maeve barked a humorless laugh. "Between the Sidhe and the Danaan there are a lot of possible traitors."

"All the more reason to draw this war with William and the Formorians to a close."

"All the more reason to NOT be pissing off the people who make up our best chances of doing that. You know that Suile Gaela will choose to be Jennifer… Did you also know that Duke would refuse to take on the Crocker power again?"

Macha sighed. "Duke is… duplicitous by nature. From being a Gemini or from being a smuggler. From being HIS great-grandson," she pointed at Manannan. "Perhaps also from the abuse Simon inflicted on him…. I chose not to take the risk, Maeve."

"You should have looked closer. You should have taken the time to get to know him personally, not by spying from afar."

Macha looked questioningly at her.

"He would have done it so that he could have the strength to protect Jennifer."

* * *

Duke jerked awake and sat up. For just a moment he thought it was only a bad dream. That a blonde demon woman didn't come out of door opened by Jennifer and stab him, then curse him again by pouring a liquid into the wound that felt like lava. He looked for Jennifer and was relieved to find her asleep beside him. But they were both dressed. He raised his hands to his chest and found the hole Macha's dagger had caused in his shirt. Pulling it down he found that the wound was healed though a silvery line remained. Closing his eyes, he remembered the feeling he got after Macha had poured that liquid into him, it had felt the way Troubled blood did, only a hundred times more powerful. That's what she had done. Somehow she had given him the Crocker Curse again. But how and when had he got to bed?

Jennifer moved in her sleep, rolling to her back and he turned his gaze to her. Her face looked worried and he wondered if she was dreaming about what had taken place on deck. He smoothed her hair out her eyes and stroked her cheek to try and comfort her through her sleep. She turned her head into his hand, seeking him out. He wanted to ease back down with her, to remove all of their clothing and just hold her skin to skin, letting her pull him back into sleep with her. But there were matters to attend to. He rose from the bed; knowing that Maeve and Macha were topside, and he didn't know how he could tell that there was a third being up there with them, but he knew it, and he knew they weren't human either. He also knew he was going to put a stop to the Rouge acting as a Faery Ferry.

The three beings who were no longer welcome on Duke's ship exchanged glances among each other, falling silent. Macha smirked with pride. "Of course he has already awakened." They had heard him awaken and felt him drawing near. Giving a pointed stare at Macha, Manannan removed his sword and went to meet Duke at the door.

"He gets one," Macha told him.

"At. Fucking. Least," Manannan snapped.

When Duke opened the door to the upper deck he was met by a man holding a sword hilt first toward him. "She says you get one, I say take as many as you can before she draws her sword."

Duke looked at a man who appeared to be about his age in the face but whose whole presence felt ancient and heavy. The man's eyes were a swirling blue grey in color and he smelled like the sea itself. He noted Duke's recognition. "Aye, the Old Man of the Sea at your service lad. At least, to lend you a sword for now."

"What the hell am I supposed to do with this?" Duke asked. He raised the sword and brandished it, getting accustomed to the weight.

"It's an enchanted sword boy, hold onto it and you'll get some ideas."

"What is it, the Vorpal Sword?"

"I don't hand out dragon killers."

The Old Man seemed serious, but Duke just cast him a sideways glance and moved to face Macha on the deck. She had her back to him, in conference with Maeve who, even in her fae form, looked upset but resigned and tired. She looked very tired. Maeve nodded in his direction and stepped back a few paces while Macha turned to face him.

"Are you here for a bloodletting then? Do you want to take a shot at my heart?"

"Do I even have a shot at that?"

She was silent a long moment, her silver gaze steady on his. She shrugged off the strange metal box that rested on her shoulders and raised her hands to push the cloak of feathers back over her shoulders, exposing herself and showing that she was unarmed.

"My sister informs me that you would have willingly accepted what you call your curse if I had spoken to you of it. That you would do it because it gave you the means to protect my niece. Is that true?"

It wasn't so much that Macha looked any more human or any less scary having ostensibly disarmed herself. She wasn't wearing a human disguise the way that Maeve and apparently Manannan were. Maybe she never did or would. It was that she looked accepting.

"Is that why you did it?"

"It is more of a side benefit. I did it because I had purpose in giving a dilution of my power to the Troubled people here, to keep in check the worst of Troubles because they could take on unpredictable aspects as they mutated. While there was always the possibility that a Crocker could turn on another…" She shrugged. "The future is always in flux. I could see Wade backing down just as clearly as I could see him taking that suicide run at Jennifer and then you."

"So what do I call you, 'Grandma?'"

"Not if you like your vocal chords in their current arrangement. Likewise, I do not believe that Manannan Mac Lir over there cares to be referred to as 'Grandpa' either."

Duke only raised an eyebrow and Macha explained, "On your mother's side. It is the most likely reason why you were quite unique in being able to control the urges the rest of your kin could not."

Duke sighed, "So if I manage to stab you with this thing - what happens?"

"I bleed a bit before I heal myself and your sense of justice is satisfied - somewhat."

Duke raised the sword. "Could I kill you with it?"

"No."

Though he raised the sword, he didn't try to strike. "I heard you tell Audrey and the rest that I would be stronger than I was before? That true?"

She nodded.

"Why don't I feel any different then?"

"You will with the next adrenaline rush," Maeve answered. "And then you're going to need some… help. I think."

"A bit like a lightning rod, you will need a grounding wire." Macha took a step toward him. "Are you going to use that thing as anything other than a pointer?"

Instead of answering or making any attempt at striking her Duke asked another question, "Did your sister over there know what you were going to do to me?"

"I certainly did not tell her."

"I only realized what was coming when I saw the vial she drew out, Duke. And that only because Manannan told me earlier today why he wouldn't take me here, because the last time she was on his ship she bled him into the vial."

"Then dropped me in the ocean, stole my ship and left it in the Gobi desert. And I want my cloak back, bitch."

"You will get it back, Old Man." She took another step toward Duke. "What are you waiting for Curse Killer? A written invitation?"

"Good question," Manannan rejoined. "Do you know what pretty much every living and nearly all the dead fae would give to be standing in your shoes, lad? You've got a sword pointed at Macha The Destroyer and you're still breathing, with your lungs still in your body. Hell I'm considering placing a bid with you."

"Why do you want me to stab you so much? Do you think it would give me a rush? Trigger my curse?"

"Would it? Give you a rush, I mean?" She responded. "Did it ever give you a rush to attack anyone?"

He nodded his head.

"And yet, like everything else you overcame the desire to pursue that rush. There is honor in raising a sword only in defense. And that is admirable."

Duke lowered the sword. She took another step toward him.

"But then, how many times have you almost lost Jennifer? How many of your women died because you only played defense?" That did it. Duke didn't see the slight smile of victory on her face before his own eyes turned the same shade of silver as hers and he raised the sword and struck at her, a slash across the chest that would have dropped any mortal. With Macha of course there was only a splatter of blood and then the wound healed, leaving a tear in her shirt. She was near enough that some of the blood splatter hit him in the face and he raised his hand to wipe it off. He watched and waited for the blood to absorb into his skin but it didn't. He still felt the rush though, building inside him. And it was stronger than any time before. It sent him to his knees but Macha was there, holding him up.

"Stand your ground Duke. Mind over matter, right? You have trained half your life for this. Everything you have ever endured, mounting and building and conditioning you for this. That is MY power burning through your veins, and if you search for it, Manannan's strength is there too, cooling it, thinning it, making it bearable to you. Stand your ground and ride it out."

Maeve watched Manannan's sword penetrate all the way through Macha's back as she clutched Duke close to hold him up.

"That's got to sting a bit," Manannan murmured close to her. She only nodded and kept an eye on the blood spilling onto the deck. "Don't worry," he assured her, "I'll make sure it's cleaned off." He watched the scene unfolding before them another moment. Duke was in convulsions now and still Macha held on and held him up.

"She's not letting him fall," Manannan commented.

"She's not evil you know," Maeve huffed. "She's not always completely callous either."

"There are a few who would make a few points against that claim."

"And if they wanted to continue to press that point they may meet with a few of mine. She didn't get that sword on her back by being evil Mac Lir, but she DID get it by being willing to do what is necessary. I definitely do not agree with every tactic she takes, but I trust her."

Manannan was silent after that and Duke was growing more stable and gaining his own footing. Macha continued to hold him until his eyes went back to brown and his own strength could keep him more or less upright.

Duke felt like he had run the Boston Marathon all the way to Bangor and back. When Macha let him go he bent to catch his breath and only then noticed that he was still holding the sword and that she was impaled with it. She'd held him up the entire time with a sword sticking through her gut. He tried to pull it out but it was stuck well enough that he didn't quite have the strength to do it and he felt her hands cover his own and gently push it away.

"I think that two shall be enough, yes?" And she removed the sword herself, turning to Manannan and tossing it to him. He wiped it clean on his own blue cloak and sheathed it. "Are you alright? Are you strong enough now?"

"Uh, yeah. Are you…?" He gestured toward a wound that was already closing.

She shrugged. "It is an annoyance."

They regarded each other silently for a moment before Macha continued, "You should contrive a few more instances of an adrenaline rush outside of a crisis. It will give you some experience in withstanding the power rush. There is also a chance that I got the concentration wrong." She reached into her cloak and Duke backed away quickly. In response, Macha slowed her actions and carefully withdrew another vial filled with a bluish colored liquid. "You cannot just drink this, it has to go into a wound or intravenously. Add sparingly." She gave a sideways glance to Manannan. "It is not all that easy to get."

"It's off the fuckin' market," Manannan snapped.

Duke sat heavily down onto the nearby hatch and looked out at the dark waves rippling all around. Macha sat down near him and set the vial down in between them. Maeve elbowed Manannan and ushered him into the chart room with her, giving them their privacy.

"Are you going to tell her about your wife? It is a big deal. At least, it will be to her."

"I don't even know how to tell her."

"What about what your father did to you?"

"Agh. Is there ANYTHING you people don't know?"

"I am certain there is but not knowing it I cannot comment upon it."

"Do you just sit up… or over there, spying on us?"

"Lately, I have. I have had some important tasks to complete and gathering intel was necessary. You know I do not judge you though right? Or I do not condemn you at any rate. You… you share traits with me. A willingness to do what is necessary, and of course, the gift of death and destruction."

"Are you trying to bond with me?"

"I would not know how to; or what to do with such a bond. And you should know that your luck in your smuggling enterprise, your ability to have always escaped non-fae related trouble comes more from Manannan. I think he might favor you. You know, your name means "leader of the sea." I took that to be a significant portent and it continues to prove as such."

"I hear you and Rhiannon have a pretty tight bond."

"We do. I will miss her if she makes the choice I expect her to make."

"She's not really your sister though, right?"

"No. I am not born of the Danaan at all. It is common enough knowledge that I am older. So… whatever aversion to incest you have… you have no cause to worry."

"If you're not one of the Tuatha De Danaan, what are you?"

"Older." She said it with a cold finality and Duke let it go.

"What's in the funny box?"

"My sword, its materials are radio-active to humans so it remains cased in a special box."

"Do you ever use it?"

"I will use it soon. I will use it to destroy William. Maeve will find her way into the realm of the Formorians and I will follow her in and destroy them all."

"I thought you couldn't kill William without killing Audrey."

"That link will be destroyed just in time."

"So a whole race of people? Just… gone?"

"They are not human either, you know. And they tend to be quite evil. They have used the Troubled people of Haven to exploit problems among the Sidhe and the Danaan and splinter apart Maeve's rule. They have also created or exacerbated Troubles. Like your first destroyed Trouble - Nix. So yes, I will drive them to extinction if I can."

"How are you going to do that?"

"With minimal flair and yet great enthusiasm."

At his look, "The world really will be a better place, including Haven, if they are no longer literally under foot."

He sighed. "So where do you get a sword like that?"

After a long moment of silence she responded, "from my father." Her voice was heavy and cold and once again, Duke felt like a part of their conversation had come to a close.

"Do you really see me as just some soldier in a war?"

"Not 'just' a soldier in a war… And do you really see yourself as NOT one? You came back to Haven to fulfill a promise made to your father. One that you were not really honor bound to keep. And you proceeded to step away from your role as self-serving smuggler to…."

He held up his hand to silence her, "I got it."

"Jennifer will be afraid if she awakens without you. Audrey and Nathan will both be up here soon enough for their own answers. And none of you will really get the sleep you need for what is coming."

"Yeah, well, that's just another day in Haven. You, uh, you going back soon?"

She seemed to smile around her fangs. "Have I worn out my welcome?"

Duke stood up. "Can you really help us win this thing against William, help Audrey and the rest of the Troubled people?"

"Yes."

"I thought there couldn't be so many of you around Haven without making the Troubles worse."

"Manannan is part of the sea, part of the world. His blood is not a Trouble."

"What about you?"

"I understand that humans believe that things always get worse before they get better. It really will all be over soon. Once William and the Formorians are destroyed the Troubles will be much easier to manage, even if they never quite go away."

Duke didn't know how he knew it, but he knew that Jennifer was awakening and that she was afraid. He went toward her without another glance to Macha.

"Duke," she called softly after him.

"What?" He was irritated with the delay.

"She is likely to seem different to you. You are still adjusting to your renewed abilities. Your senses are likely to be…"

"Fae powered," Manannan finished. He and Maeve had noticed Duke's motion to leave and exited the chartroom to rejoin Macha.

"Great. Thanks."

"Play your flute, please, Manannan," Maeve requested when Duke had gone. "I'd prefer to hear that."

* * *

As Duke neared his room his awareness of her shifted. She wasn't awake, but at this proximity he could hear her heartbeat more clearly, she was either close to waking up or her dream had taken a fearful turn again. When he opened the door he saw what Macha and Manannan had been trying to prepare him for. In the darkness, Jennifer was alight with the same glow he'd seen across her the first night they'd made love under the stars. When he'd thought it was just candle light. Her natural scent teased his nostrils like an enticing perfume. He sat on the bed and reached to touch her as her eyes fluttered open and her own hand reached for where he should have been.

"Duke?" He caught her searching hand in his, giving it a reassuring squeeze before smoothing her hair away from her face.

"I'm here, Princess."

"Ohmigod, are you okay?" She started to get up but he pressed her gently down.

"I'm fine, Jennifer. I'm… okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," he stood and pulled off his shirt and pants before joining her on the bed again.

Jennifer blinked rapidly a few times before repeating herself, "you're okay? How are you okay?"

Duke answered by kissing her, gathering her in his arms and rolling to his back so that she straddled him. She pulled back in some surprise when she felt just how _okay_ Duke was. Fingers entwining into her hair he pulled her back down and kissed along her jaw line to her ear. "I want you," he murmured as his other hand moved under her shirt, his hand super heated against her skin as he moved to unclasp her bra. When he kissed her again she was hesitant but kissed him back. Her eye lids sliding closed as she felt his gravity pulling her in. Duke was well enough now, and she had caught on that in Haven, that was what people grabbed onto: enough and now.

Everything about her was putting him on sensory overload, from the nimbus of golden glow around her to her natural and familiar scent of summer flowers and sunshine mixing with the ocean air and his own, to the softness of her skin. He could hear her heartbeat quickening, he was sure he could feel it and his own was responding. When he cupped the softness of her breast and felt the response of her hardening nipple and he heard her moan and press her hips harder down on him he felt the rush of adrenaline that he dreaded.

When Jennifer felt Duke tense and go still beneath her she looked up and saw silver glowing in the dark. She wasn't bleeding, but somehow Duke's Trouble had been triggered. Reflexively she started to pull back, but his arm came around her waist like an iron band to stop her.

"I would never hurt you, Jennifer," he was trying to be reassuring but his voice was strained and his jaw clenched.

"I know. I just… I don't know what happened…"

He moved both of his hands to frame her face and they were shaking from the tension, the apparent violence within him. Duke was hanging onto his control by a thread. "It's okay, just an adrenaline rush." He laughed humorlessly before he kissed her again, relieved when she opened for him willingly and met him stroke for stroke with her tongue. He broke the kiss to pull at her shirt, then simply tearing it and the bra into pieces to be rid of them. When she gasped and pulled away he rolled them over, pinning her beneath him. "NEVER hurt you, Jennifer," he whispered against her ear before kissing his way down to her breasts, tasting her glowing skin that smelled of roses and honeysuckle. The scent of her arousal hit him full force and he growled against her breast before fastening onto her nipple with teeth and tongue. She cried out and he gentled himself on her, blowing a cooling breath across her breast to make up for the friction of his teeth.

"Oh GOD, Duke!" He smiled against her skin as her finger nails scored the skin of his back.

"That's it, Princess," he gave the same attention to her other breast and reveled in her arousal and eagerness even as he repeated to himself, the mantra that Macha had given him; _mind over matter._

Her hands left him to start pushing down her leggings and he moved to help her.

"Don't tear those," Jennifer didn't know exactly what Duke was going through but the silk thong she was wearing was expensive and he'd already ruined the matching bra.

Heart hammering, Duke took a moment to gaze at a dark blue scrap of silk that covered her mound and very little else. _Buddha, does she glow EVERYWHERE?_ He let himself fall onto her there, kissing her through the silk, drawing those delicate folds still covered in silk into his mouth until she begged him to get them off her anyway he could. He didn't tear them, he used his teeth to grab the silken strand at her hip and pull them down her legs. She did everything she could to make it a quick removal and when he was finished he didn't hesitate before spreading her thighs wide and thrusting so hard into her that the bed rattled on its bolts. Jennifer arched her back, letting her arms fall over her head and grasping at the smooth wall above her and screamed out his name. He reached for her hands and clasped them with each of his, bracing himself there, feeling the bite of her nails on his knuckles as she gripped him back and moved with him. He felt her lips, teeth and tongue at his neck and shoulder and if it was possible his blood surged hotter than before. He bent and sank his teeth hard into her neck earning another surge of her body against his while her channel contracted along the length of him. He withdrew and repeated the action and this time he took her cry with his mouth in a kiss so fierce Jennifer was sure she was disappearing inside of him, that her will and heart and body wasn't hers anymore but his, swallowed whole. And she loved it, finding shelter there. With his next thrust rapture struck her like lightning and she wrenched her hands free to grasp onto his shoulder with one hand and clutch his head to her neck with the other, throwing her head back to give him more access. She'd never thought of herself as the type to enjoy or want sex like this but it was Duke. And he'd changed everything around her and inside of her.

Duke released her from his teeth before he drew blood and absently worried about bruising before raising onto his elbows in order to find and take her mouth again.

"You're mine, Princess," he murmured between kisses. "Mine. Always."

Jennifer gazed up into eyes that were still silver. She framed his face with her hands and felt her heart break open a little more and felt him take over the empty space that was there. "Duke, I -"

He stopped her with another kiss. "Did you know you glow, Jennifer? Like the eastern sky at dawn." He slowed his rhythm and ground his hips against her, his chest pressed into her breasts with his heart thundering over hers while the base of his cock hit her sensitive clit. He kissed her again and again, covering her face in soft kisses that belied the movements of his hips against hers. She was so awash in sensation she couldn't quite take in the question. "And that you smell like honeysuckle and roses mixed with something so feminine it sends me spinning? And now you smell of the ocean air and I can smell myself on you too…"

He rose up above her, grasping her hips to his and keeping them joined as he knelt between her legs to watch her writhe before him in the rapture he was giving her. She whimpered in protest, missing his heat and weight on her. Her hands clutched at his arms, wanting to draw him back down but he only moved one hand from grasping her hip and fanned his fingers across her belly while his thumb came to rest on her clitoris, delivering a new ecstasy that edged too close to agony and caused her to cry out, begging him, "Duke, please!"

"Open your eyes, Jennifer, look at me." She did. She would do anything for him now, they both knew it. "Tell me that you're mine."

"I am," she gasped. She was. It was frightening and reassuring at once but she knew she was, she belonged to this silver eyed man who was surely half-god by now; after what Macha had done to him. This fierce being who said she glowed like the dawn and smelled of spring flowers. And she belonged to the man with eyes as dark and soft as velvet who had showed her the stars and his heart and the way home to him. "I'm yours Duke. I'm yours…."

She repeated the promise to him like a prayer as a tidal rapture overtook her and she lost words and struggled for breath. He reached to bring her up to him, wrapping his arms around her and holding her so that she was lifted above him, draped over him; gravity pulling her deeper onto him and sending that rush into her again. Duke clasped her tight to him, the intensity of her orgasm causing her to clench around him so tight he stilled. When it passed he laid her back down, following her carefully and stretching himself back over her. Her eyes opened and he let himself go. Let himself dissolve into their golden light. "I'm yours, Princess. I'm yours forever too."


	10. Chapter 10

Stay

Chapter 10

Nathan and Audrey both jerked awake at the sound of a scream and immediately checked for each other before assessing their whereabouts and reaching for their guns. They were in Jennifer's room on the Rouge and it took a few seconds to recall what had happened and work out that Maeve must have made sure they were brought down here. Their weapons were lying on the night stand, each had the magazine clip next to the gun itself. Audrey was closest and she loaded each weapon and handed Nathan his. That was when Nathan realized what they were actually hearing.

"Where's Duke and Jennifer?" Audrey asked, then stopped when she realized the same thing Nathan did.

"In Duke's room, I hope," he answered. "You want to go up…?"

"Yeah." They heard another strangled cry from Jennifer and each pulled a face. "Oh man, I hope he closed the door," Audrey muttered before holstering her gun and climbing off the bed. Nathan shuddered at the alternative knowing that they had to pass Duke's cabin to get topside and started out of the room.

"Nathan!" Audrey hissed. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, tugging her shoes off.

"What?" He kept his voice at a matched whisper to her.

"Take off your shoes."

"Why do WE have to worry about being quiet?"

She glared at him. "Because this embarrassment squick is bad enough without them knowing that we know and heard and… oh just take your shoes off!"

"Fine!" He was still trying to whisper. "Fine, I'm taking them off. Oh God…" He didn't even want to know what kind of sound Duke was making right now. "Let's just hurry!"

With weapons holstered and shoes in hand they tiptoed as fast as they could past Duke's cabin. Nathan held one finger in his ear and had his shoulder hunched up high in an effort to cover the other one as he carried his shoes. Audrey clapped her shoes over both ears and shuffled past as fast as she could. As they got closer to the stairwell that would lead them topside they could hear the tones of a flute that seemed to create a cone of alternate sound that drowned out Duke and Jennifer's love making.

"Thank goodness," Audrey breathed as she climbed the steps and opened the door. She and Nathan found Maeve and Macha still there, as expected, but were both puzzled by the presence of a man they didn't recognize playing the flute.

Maeve nodded to them in acknowledgement. "That is Manannan Mac Lir, The Old Man of the Sea. You'll excuse him if he continues to play, and for fuck's sake close the fucking door!"

Nathan and Audrey scurried out of the door and closed it.

"I take it Duke is okay now?" Audrey asked.

"From what I can hear, he's doing a fair lot better than that," Manannan said around his flute. Maeve rolled her eyes.

"I did suggest that he contrive additional adrenaline rushes as a way to help him learn how to deal with the power rush," Macha offered.

"I hope they hurry up," Nathan muttered.

Manannan soured the note on the flute over a laugh. "I imagine the lass feels differently about that," he snickered.

Maeve produced a bottle of whiskey, drank from it and offered it to the newcomers. Nathan declined with a shake of his head but Audrey accepted, drinking straight from it.

She turned to Macha. "Why did you do that to Duke? Especially like that?"

Macha regarded her a moment before answering, "It did not occur to me that he would accept it voluntarily, as Maeve says, to protect Jennifer. And there was no other way. Which, again, makes an argument against volunteering."

"He was up here earlier," Maeve stated.

"Yeah, he got to stab Macha!" Manannan exclaimed around his flute. "Twice!"

Nathan was glad he couldn't hear what the three Fae gathered around apparently could when their heads all turned toward the door, their eyes widening.

"Keep playing, damn it," Maeve growled.

Macha only quirked an eyebrow. "Perhaps I should have brought an enchanted harp?"

Audrey grinned at her. "Would that help?" Nathan shook his head resignedly.

Macha smiled back, her fangs glinting in the moonlight. "Not really. Manannan's flutes and whistles create a sound distortion. In fact, Manannan, I shall require enough whistles for our merry band here. I would like to deliver as grand a surprise to William as possible."

Manannan shrugged and kept playing.

"A sound distortion?" Audrey echoed. "How?"

Macha shrugged. "The same way that a storm or waves breaking onto the shore drown other sounds. Even heavy fog causes sound to travel differently, frequently confusing humans and yes, even Fae. The fact that Manannan puts iron in all of his whistles and flutes strengthens the effect." She paused and gazed at Audrey for a moment.

"It is good to speak with you. In every incarnation, every identity, the part of you that is always Rhiannon is present. It is that part that Nathan loves, though it is hard to recognize or even reconcile. Isn't it Nathan?"

"It's been a little confusing at times. Confusing and…"

"It's caused some trouble between us," Audrey admitted. "No pun intended."

Since Macha had addressed him Nathan asked her, "Do you know how to undo the bond between Audrey and William?"

"I do. Audrey has to die. And then Jennifer has to be able to restore her right after I kill William. And getting all of that planned out is proving to be a challenge, even to me."

"Parker has to _die_?!"

"_CAN_ Jennifer revive me?"

"Yes, and I believe so."

"You BELIEVE so?" Nathan snapped.

"Even from my considerable vantage point some things were hidden from me. And I looked longer than most would have been able to stand. Rhiannon, a great deal of your blood went to that infant, if there is another being in this universe who could do what you could, it is her. She has already healed you, without scarring I might add." She looked around for Maeve who had moved to sitting on top of the pilot house, hogging the whiskey and gazing at the sky. "She healed Maeve too," she said in a low voice. "Also without scarring - and she did that as a newborn. And after that Sidhe assassin struck at her, her eyes were glowing _red._ Maeve's eyes glow red when she is battle ready. So yes, I _believe_ that Suile Gaela can revive you as Audrey Parker, mortal with Fae blood, immune to the Troubles."

"She healed Maeve?" Audrey asked. "From what?"

"From various forms of torture. I think that William was experimenting to see just how strong she is, or to see what, if anything can actually kill her. I know that she was cut with iron and had lemon juice poured into the wounds. If that sounds painful to you recall that both of those substances are toxic and deadly to our kind. That she simultaneously kept her pregnancy hidden, and kept herself and Suile Gaela alive attests to her great strength. I also know that she was burned alive. Understand that Maeve has _dominion_ over fire. So to find an ember or coal that could not only ignite but also engulf her… We have traitors among the Sidhe and Danaan. Ultimately, Suile Gaela's great strength also comes into play. However, I am convinced that almost no one other than Maeve could have withstood that."

Audrey turned to look at Maeve up on the pilot house. She had only hinted vaguely that she had suffered after being captured. Audrey also considered how differently time moved.

"How long…?" Nathan asked, drawing the same conclusion.

"Time travels much faster in the barn because it is a place between worlds. Still… even by our count of time it has been only a month. Her hair is still very short and she was still wearing only silk when she left, all other fabric irritating her skin."

"She's still recovering, isn't she?" Audrey pressed.

"Her full strength you mean? Yes. We found her just in time. Any longer and enough viscera and tissue would have been burned away to reveal Suila Gaela's presence."

"Would it help if Jennifer and I both…?"

"No. That kind of deep within recovery takes time that Maeve does not really have. Don't worry, she is more than strong enough for this fight. And I am here."

"So Jennifer is stronger than she looks?" Nathan asked.

Macha smiled and nodded. "She is the daughter of the great warrior Queen Maeve, the granddaughter of Danu herself and she shares blood bonds with Rhiannon and myself, not to mention an admittedly tenuous one to Manannan through Duke. When Jennifer makes her stand, all the worlds will know it."

"Is she going to be ready for that? She's just learning how to fight."

"No one is ever ready for their calling. Their calling makes them ready."

"Any other clichés to help with that?" Audrey grumped.

"Yes. The strongest of steel is forged in the hottest of fires. There is also something about the strength of people and tea in relation to hot water."

"Are you trying to be funny?"

"No," Macha sighed. "I am always only deadly serious."

"Emphasis on the deadly," Nathan quipped.

Macha only pointed to her nose in response. Audrey gazed up at Maeve on top of the pilot house. She was not in her human form and Audrey wondered if it was tiring to her to maintain the illusion. Last night, she had shooed them away with the pretense that they needed their rest, had she needed her own rest? Audrey recalled watching her stand there and take the chiming of Duke's iron bell. She'd bled from her nose and ears and coughed some up even. Was she still healing from internal injuries?

She looked to Nathan and was glad to see that look of understanding on his face. That was one of her favorite reasons for loving him, he seemed to read and understand her the way one did a favorite novel or painting. And while she knew he had struggled with different identities and personalities, she also knew that he had found her heart and soul and loved them before they knew of the story of Rhiannon. His mouth curved into a smile and he nodded. Without words he encouraged her to go to the ancient, powerful being that was her little sister.

Nathan watched Audrey climb up onto the pilot house and sit next to Maeve, taking the bottle out of her hand and pulling from it again. He watched them from the back as the two of them eased into a companionable exchange.

"Tell me Nathan, do you still find me a detestable being?"

"Does it matter what I think?"

"You're soon to be my brother in law, I think we should get along if we can."

"I don't know what to think of all this anymore. It's not like the Troubles were ever simple but lately everything about Haven and the Troubles is more and more complicated. And I don't know how to protect Audrey from William or anything anymore. A couple of days ago she woke up in an alternate universe, last night she suffered a gun shot wound when Duke shot William and was magically healed by Jennifer, who turns out to be a faery princess and, by the way, Audrey is really Rhiannon the retired queen of the faeries."

"And all you wanted was normal?" Macha enquired. Despite the question, he could tell she wasn't mocking him and he was relieved.

"I think everyone who grows up in Haven craves normal."

She nodded in understanding. "And yet, surely you know it is only an illusion."

"I think it's a relative term," he corrected.

She considered this a moment before changing points. "You are worried about protecting Audrey? She is quite capable. Are you sure you are not more worried about her needing you as much as you need her? Or do you truly wish for the power to protect her?"

He narrowed his eyes on her, "I don't envy Duke and what he goes through with his Trouble."

"Yet you fear him in the throes of that power. I have seen you. I have seen you fear for yourself and others. I saw you keep Jennifer away from him when he took in the hateful blood. A word of caution, do not ever try to keep her from him again. Especially in that state. Your own Trouble though, carries a curious strength to it. Yet numbness doesn't prevent your injury. You are a strong man, but you are a man nonetheless and your numbness can lead you to greater injury."

"Are you offering me something?"

"No. You will hear much talk bandied about regarding the strength of the Fae and Duke's strength enhanced by what I did. If you think that did not LOOK easy, know that it was not. That kind of alchemical process required more bargaining than I care to do. But Nathan, soon enough your humanity, and your human instincts, will be the key to saving more than Audrey."

"Do you already know how this all ends?"

"Ends? Yes. With William dead and Arawn and Pwyll finally destroyed and laid to rest. With Maeve's crown secured along with Rhiannon's happiness as a mortal Audrey Parker with her lover, Nathan Wuornos. Likewise Suile Gaela will choose her mortal life as Jennifer Mason to stay with Duke. Getting to that end is a bit of a mystery. Doors keep opening and closing…. As I told Duke; the future is always in flux."

"You said you gave Duke god-hood? Where does all this leave him?"

"I am glad to see you worrying about his well being. I did not make him immortal. Besides the fact that I actually cannot do that, I would not without a great deal of counsel. You are wise enough to see the curse in the power that I gave to Duke and to his ancestors before him. Likewise, living forever carries its own curse. Apparently becoming inhumane is one of them."

"That bothered you, didn't it?"

"Only a little. By choice I have limited experience with humanity. But I am not intentionally cruel – except to my enemies."

"Do you ever think your friends might have difficulty knowing the difference?"

"I do not usually have human friends and while Maeve may not approve of my approach, she recognizes my intent. Rhiannon, likewise is able to recognize my intent when she has her memories."

She was silent a moment. "Maeve says that if you do not trust us, you will act on your own. That you will not listen to us or, as she put it, take orders from us."

"Take orders?"

"Consider how Maeve thinks. She commands armies, her language will regularly reflect that position. She is also gifted with persuasion. You would find yourself doing what she asked anyway."

"If she commands armies, why not bring one here and defeat William and the Formorians?"

"All that Fae blood poured out over Haven again? We cannot risk it. We will go to the underworld and take them on there. In that circumstance, Maeve will be unable to trust most of her soldiers. Manannan has recently committed himself and his army so they can come. We are doing this covertly so a small army is preferable."

"That trouble making lily that William has, can it affect Audrey like it did Jennifer?"

"Of course, it's altered somehow with the blood of her son. She is anthropomorphic now. Her body completely in human form. She still carries enough Fae genetics to give her a great deal of immunity to the Troubles, but those spores are not Troubles in and of themselves. Like the Datura lily or the Laburnum, they would just be flowers on trees if they were not used as poison."

"Can that tonic lily be used to protect her?"

"Yes."

"What about you, or Maeve or even Manannan Mac Lir over there?"

"It is not likely but I cannot say it is impossible. Of the three of us, Maeve would be the most likely as she shares a direct blood tie to Pryderi through Rhiannon. And if that is true and it becomes an actual threat then you will be very, very glad that I and Manannan are here to stop her."

Nathan nodded and took in what she said as he turned his gaze up toward Audrey, still sitting with Maeve. Macha traced his gaze.

"Go and join them. Be warned though, do not engage in a drinking game with Maeve. It can be lethal for humans."

"She only has one bottle."

"She has HER bottle. It is a never emptying bottle."

* * *

"So did I ever like being queen?" Audrey asked.

"I'm not sure. You were good at it. You were… As you are now. Fair, kind and compassionate." Maeve grinned around the mouth of the bottle. "I think you were probably better at it than I am. I'm kind of a bitch."

"How was I so fooled by Pwyll?"

"You see the best in people. That's part of what makes you such a good queen, so good at helping the Troubled, and it's why people like Duke love you so much."

Audrey glanced at her sharply. "I thought with Jennifer…."

"You know better. You know what I mean."

"Does he? Love her, I mean?"

"Concerned as we may be, it's none of our business. They're both adults."

Audrey guffawed and took the bottle from Maeve. "When I met him last June, Duke was more like a man-child than anything else."

"See what a positive influence you are?"

"Maybe it's just everything I've put him through."

Maeve rolled her eyes. "You're not responsible for everything. Neither as Audrey nor as Rhiannon."

"I'm definitely not responsible for his Trouble now."

"Don't judge Macha. I know how she can seem, but ultimately I think even Duke will be glad of what she did. I always knew she was deliberate in creating the Crocker Curse, I think she took time to try to perfect it."

"Why do you think Duke will be glad to have his Trouble back?"

"Because it will be easier for him to control this time. Because he really will be stronger. Because it will enable him to do the things he wants or needs to be able to do."

"Like protect Jennifer?"

"Yes, but not just Jennifer. You and Nathan as well. You realize he thinks of the three of you as his family, don't you?"

"Yeah. I do." Audrey took another drink. She'd worried about being selfish for months because she'd enjoyed Duke's affection even as she had let herself fall in love with Nathan. "I'd really thought of him and Nathan as my family too. And Vince and Dave. Dwight and Claire too. Even Jordan and she hated me but she was like that cousin you knew had it too rough and you wished you could do something. And Jennifer is… Well, I guess she _is _like a niece to me. But, I hate how I can feel them more easily as family than I can James or Pryderi. Or even you. Or Macha over there who, so far, just seems kind of scary to me."

"We are hardly speaking to each other as strangers, are we? And you didn't seem afraid of Macha earlier. When you were acting with feeling and instinct and not trying to think it all out. But remember, all sentient beings are capable of keeping shields in place to protect their hearts and minds. Audrey Parker is protecting Rhiannon and remaining functional. When it's time to remember, you will. And if needed, there is a potion that can undo the work of the Washers."

"Did I ever happen to pick the name 'Sybil' to use as an identity here?"

Maeve only chuckled in response and took another drink.

"You two leave anything in that bottle for me?" Nathan asked, hoisting himself up onto the roof of the pilot house with them.

"Uh… Oh wow. Funny you should ask," Audrey responded. Maeve smirked at the slur in her words.

"You should probably slow down, Parker," Nathan said with a smile.

"Did we really drink that much?"

"No telling," Maeve responded. "The bottle is enchanted to never go empty." She handed it to Nathan.

"You know, you'd be a big hit at a frat house," Audrey joked.

Maeve blinked at her. "What do you mean I _would _be?"

* * *

Macha watched as the trio on the pilot house settled in. She gazed up into the seemingly endless black sky of night. Into this view of the Great Wheel of time and space. And as she had for eons, wished she could see past the veil. She reached up and untied the black cord that held her wings into what looked like a cloak of feathers, then spread them.

"I've not seen that sight in a long, long time," Manannan commented. He had stopped playing awhile ago. The sound cover no longer necessary. "I'd begun to wonder if you remembered yourself at all anymore."

She didn't answer. There was nothing to say.

He tried another approach. "Do you think you'll ever get to go back?"

Without shifting her gaze she answered, "That also remains hidden from me."

He stood next to her and reached to take one of her hands in his. She sighed. So few dared to touch her at all, let alone so spontaneously. "I'm glad I can't imagine what you're missing."

She shrugged. "The memories are genetic, not experiential."

"Why didn't you just tell me what you wanted my blood for? I would have given it to you without all the fuss."

"But probably not your cloak or your ship as well."

"What the fuck _did _you do with my ship?"

"I traded it for the necessary knowledge to make our blood work to restore the power of the Crocker Curse."

"You did _what?!"_ He couldn't believe the gall of her.

"Relax, obviously Zhang Boduan had only limited use for it. If any at all."

"Bloody hell, Macha, it's not like swiping a pen."

"Why would I need a pen?"

"You fucking know what I mean. What about my cloak?"

"I haven't seen it in a awhile."

"Oy, you are one droll bitch, you know that lass?"

She smiled and squeezed his hand. "I promise you will get it back, Old Man."

"He's not Harry Potter, you know."

She laughed silently. "And we would hardly qualify as Lily and James."

"For what it's worth, I do believe you'd stand between him and a would be murderer."

"Ah, but the difference is, he and I would both still be living."

"Who is his father, Macha?"

"Simon Crocker."

"You know who I meant."

She sighed heavily. "That is my secret to keep as long as it will stay kept."

"You know, keeping it a secret just makes it seem worse."

"I doubt it."

Manannan sighed. "Secrets are a poison, a cancer…."

"It is a good thing that I am invulnerable as well as immortal then."

"Damn it Macha. If it's what I think it is and that secret blows at the wrong time…."

"Only make sure you are not the one lighting the fuse Manannan."

"Fine. You help me clean up the mess you made with Duke over there and I'll help you clean up the mess you made with He Who Shall Not Be Named."

* * *

Jennifer awoke to the familiar comfort of the weight of Duke's arm across her. She stretched and turned her head to look at him as he lay on his belly sprawled across the bed in a free fall position. She remembered researching an article on sleeping habits for The Globe and this was a position that most specialists agreed indicated an attempt to grasp control of one's life. She passed a hand over his face, feeling for herself the set of Duke's jaw and the crease in his brow that showed just how much he was failing at that. She tried to smooth away that furrow in his brow and caress away the clench of his jaw, wishing she could set him at ease the way he always could for her. The stubble along his jaw scraped lightly against her palm and caused a slightly uncomfortable prickling there. She tried to look at the cut that Macha had given her before pressing her hand down onto the wound over Duke's heart, in the darkness all that could be seen was the shimmer of a thin silvery blue line. Looking at Duke's chest she could see a similar one. Was it already scarred? Why had Macha cut her like that?

A different awareness settled over her and she knew that Duke was awake and watching her. She looked to him, wondering if she would encounter his silver gaze in the dark, or if his eyes were back to normal. She was relieved to find the latter.

"Whatcha doin'?" He mumbled sleepily.

"Trying to see if I'm still glowing," she teased lightly. She didn't want to worry him about scars or Macha cutting her right now. She didn't know how upset he would be or what would happen.

He smiled slightly and flexed his shoulders to lift himself and move to his back.

"If you are, I can't see it right now."

"What's happening Duke?"

He sighed, "I don't know for sure yet. Did I - Did I hurt you?"

"No. It was, um, it was surprising. But you didn't hurt me." She moved to lay over him, craving his warmth and hoping to give him reassurance that she was unharmed. She lifted her head to look up toward him and rested her chin on the back of her hand, keeping her palm down and out of sight for now. "Where were you - before?"

"I went up to confront Macha and Maeve. To get some answers."

"Did they give you any?"

"Yes and no. Maeve didn't know what Macha had planned although apparently Macha has seen enough of the future to have had this as a back up plan for who knows how long. Oh, and have you ever heard of the Old Man of the Sea?"

"'Of' or 'and?'"

"'Of,' not the Hemingway book."

"Yeah, it's sort of a nickname for Manannan Mac Lir. A Celtic Sea God."

"Aw, man."

"What?"

"Apparently he's some sort of Fae ancestor of mine on my mother's side. Lucky me - right?"

"I don't know. I've gotta wonder why these Fae people keep wanting to get it on with humans since Halflings like myself are so loathsome as to be marked for death and I also have to wonder how rare or common it is for people in Haven to have Fae ancestry on both sides. Of course, all that leads to me wondering why people let themselves have kids around here at all and that just seems cruel."

"Well, we know that Maeve said you were unplanned but then she ended up fighting for you along with Macha and Rhiannon. And the most likely reason they want to kill you is because you're Maeve's daughter and more powerful than what a Halfling should be. And Maeve told me yesterday that Macha started the Crocker family curse on purpose."

"Wait. She did? How did she do that?"

"Maeve could only say that Macha has given birth only once and it was to the first Crocker. Basically we exist to kill people and put an end to the worst of the Troubles."

"First of all, you're not a murderer. But what I think is unique about your particular ancestry is that neither Macha nor Manannan Mac Lir are Fae. Or at least, they're not Tuatha De Danaan."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, Maeve said she thought Macha was closer to their mother's age and Manannan Mac Lir is definitely older than any of the three tribes she mentioned last night. He shows up in a lot of stories and legends with the Sidhe and the Tuatha De Danaan but he's never considered one of them. Sometimes he's a prankster or jokester. But he's said to have lots of different kinds of powers."

Duke sighed and sat up to grab the blanket at the foot of the bed, pulling it up over them. He'd felt the goosebumps raising along Jennifer's arms and wanted her comfortable. He relished the feeling of her nestling back alongside of him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Macha mentioned having his blood in me made me more able to resist the addiction that came with my family curse. And that it could do it again. She actually gave me a fucking vial of the stuff, in case she got the mix wrong."

Jennifer was shocked. "There are so many horrible things about that. How did she even get his blood from him in the first place?"

"Apparently it involved also dumping his boat in the Gobi desert."

"Huh?"

"He actually sounded more upset about that. And some cloak of his."

"Regeneration is one of his powers. I guess getting back his possessions is harder than healing."

"They all seem pretty good at regeneration. Macha let me stab her. Hell, she goaded me into it."

"Why?"

"They all seemed to think I earned the right somehow. I guess no one else gets to point a sword at Macha and walk away from it. That, and the adrenaline rush that I got when she taunted me about how often I've almost lost you, and the people I have lost because I played defense instead of attacking a threat head on I guess…. Look, Jennifer, there's something important you need to know."

She tried to keep herself still but there was a sick feeling of dread in her stomach.

"Um, what is it?"

"I was married."

"What? When?"

"Um, a long time ago. And she left me a few years back, but last year she ended up back here." He sighed heavily and Jennifer held her silence, waiting for him to tell his story.

"Jack Driscoll's uncle Ed was the Reverend of the Good Shepherd Church. Mostly they just hated Troubled people. He wanted me to follow in my father's foot steps. My grandfather's. You know, I don't know for sure how my dad started, but I know my grandfather started killing Troubled people because a group of people like Reverend Driscoll found a way to make him do it. They threatened his wife and son. My grandmother and my dad…. The Reverend was using Evi - my wife - in sort of the same way. She was sort of working for him. At least, she was at first. When she tried to confront him and his group, when she tried to defy them, they shot her dead in the street."

He heard Jennifer suck in a breath that she didn't exhale, and she was very still beside him.

"This was before I knew about my family's curse. Before my Trouble was even activated. Evi actually left me the clues I needed to find out."

"Duke… I don't - I don't know what to say."

"Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, I just didn't know how or what to say."

She sat up, tucking the blanket around her. He hated that she was suddenly hiding herself from him.

"Is there anyone else I should know about?"

Her voice sounded a little strained, like some strong emotion was squeezing her too tight.

"My old baby sitter Vanessa Stanley. She was killed by a Troubled guy who had a pyro-Trouble. She had a Trouble that caused her to see the death of a person. She said I would be killed by someone with a guard symbol tattoo. Which is why it was important for Evi to leave me the clues I needed to figure out why they might want me dead."

"Oh my God, Duke."

"And there was also Julia Carr. I've known her since we were kids. She was younger though. She always… looked up to me, had a crush on me. She left last October. She's a doctor with MSF, in Africa. But um.. She couldn't deal with me. With who I am instead of how she remembered me."

Jennifer was silent for a long moment. He started to feel that familiar hole inside getting bigger. In the darkness, he was sure she was pulling away. Her body wasn't moving but it seemed like she was shutting him out.

Finally she spoke, "I knew you were trying to get me off the Rouge for some reason other than you just wanted to run away."

"I wanted you to go back to Boston. Get the hell out of this. Get away from me so that I couldn't hurt you or so that you… I didn't want to look at you and see you looking at me the way Julia did and I didn't want you to end up getting killed because of me."

"Did you love her?"

"Which one?"

"Either of them." It sounded like she was speaking around gritted teeth.

"Well, Vanessa was my babysitter -"

"You KNOW what I mean."

"I, I thought I loved Evi. We were pretty young when we got together and it was all kinda fun at first because we were just partners in crime - literally - until she got bored. And then of course she came back and I don't know what Ed Driscoll promised her… Agh. Damn it Jennifer, I didn't love her but I cared about her. And I didn't love Julia but…" He sat up in the darkness and reached for her. He cupped her face in his hands but didn't try to kiss her. "Everyone I have ever given a damn about is dead or has left me. And after what Macha did tonight… I could _hear _your heartbeat before I even got in the room. Your fucking _heartbeat_ Jennifer! I could tell that something was scaring you in your sleep. I saw you and I could smell you and… I wouldn't have been able to stop. Do you understand me? She's turned me into worse of a monster than anyone who ever hated me just because my name was Crocker would believe. I could have _killed _you…"

"Don't you DARE try to make me leave again, Duke Crocker. Don't you dare!" She wrenched away from him and jumped off the bed, dragging the blanket with her, heading for the light switch by the door. If he couldn't see her in the dark now he would damn sure look at her in the light. And he would deal with her looking at him too. "Not after everything… Not after what you…"

She never made it to the switch and she didn't finish her sentence. Duke's arms were around her and he pulled her backward against him. "I've already tried cutting my heart out to send you away Jennifer. I couldn't make that sacrifice. I won't be trying again. I don't know how or why, and it's probably the worst mistake you've ever made but I know you're in love with me…"

She tired to wrench her self out of his arms, "you bas-"

"And I'm in love with you."

She didn't finish that sentence either. She stilled in his arms.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you."

She remained still and silent.

"Jennifer?"

"You're not very good at telling people that."

"Yeah, well, I haven't exactly had a lot of material to work with."

"Oh. Well. Let me show you." She moved to step out of his arms and he let her. She let the blanket fall to the floor and turned on the light. When she turned he could see her eyes reddened with tears that were still shimmering on her cheeks. She returned to him and reached up to cup his face in her hands. She brushed away the hair that never seemed to make it into his ponytail. Then she raised herself up to kiss him. Withdrawing she looked into his eyes.

"I love you."


End file.
